Feathery Wings
by El.Ave.Fenix
Summary: Sequel to Wingless Hawks! It's been five years, people change and so do feelings. It's not the same anymore and it never will be. Betrayal will change a person and leave deep lasting wounds. They say revenge is the best medicine, perhaps they were right.
1. Not This Time

**Not This Time...**

**A/N: Well here it is! The next chappie will include Altair and Ezio only :D Let me know what you think!**

Monica leaned back against the stable doors as her trainer rushed about trying to get her horse ready. She paused for a moment to hear the music coming from the radio that she had a few feet away from her.

Beethoven.

She smiled at the classical music that she hadn't heard in ages, Moonlight Sonata, she recalled the name.

"Watch the other riders, don't get boxed in near the rail," her trainer told her in the background as she continued to listen to the melancholy piano.

Five years, it had been five years since the incident. She had nearly forgotten all about it, it seemed like a distant memory now. The piano continued to play in the background as she neared the horse and placed a hand on its mane.

She stared at it with a blank expression; the very same horse had put her brother in the hospital a few hours ago during a practice run. The black mare stared back at her before neighing slightly. Monica pulled her hand back and walked away from the horse once more with a slight frown.

"Whatever you do, don't fall off like your brother did, hold on to the reins no matter what," her trainer warned her as she nodded slightly not really paying attention as she pulled her hair back into a ponytail and looked outside.

Other jockeys passed by with sneers directed at her, she had been called in to ride the horse when her brother went down and was unable to ride it. Naturally being the only woman there they seemed to either be distracted by her or direct their anger at her.

"How long is the race?" she asked in a monotone voice. She had changed over time; she wasn't the happy girl who viewed the world as an adventure anymore. She had finally come to realize that life was cruel, unforgiving, and cold.

"One turn, it's nothing you can't handle," her trainer replied as she nodded once more and frowned again when she turned her head towards the sky. It had started to rain, water started to pour down as the other jockeys grimaced and headed towards the stables as well to meet the horses they would be riding.

"What happened to the imbecile?" Monica asked, referring to her brother as her trainer stopped his mussing with the horse and turned towards her.

"The horse bumped into the rail and his foot slipped out of the saddle, the mare sent him flying and he crashed onto the ground…he broke several bones, do not make the same mistake," he told her as he stood next to her.

Monica continued to stare at the sky, the water still coming down hard.

She stepped out of the way calmly when a person came to collect the horse in order to show it to the crowd before the race began. Monica observed the other horses as they circled around the paddock with a straight face before stepping out into the rain with her whip and helmet in one hand while the other remained motionless at her side.

"You're gonna get it, babe!" one of the riders called out to her as she ignored the comment. It didn't matter anyway; if any of them tried anything while she was riding she would make sure to take them down with her.

"Riders up!" a voice called as she pulled out of her thoughts and headed towards her horse. The rain that fell around her had drenched her by now as she stepped over to the massive mare and mounted it with the help of her trainer.

"Don't fall off," he whispered to her just before she led the horse towards the tunnel leading to the track. She gripped the reins with one hand and snapped them lightly directing the horse as the animal grunted and moved under her command.

The hooves hitting the ground echoed in the tunnel eerily as she looked ahead. A white figure at the end of the tunnel caused her to look up with a slight sneer before it was gone. It had only been her imagination; she had put his memory to rest a long time ago.

She shook the memory off and directed her horse towards the starting gate as more jockeys joined her each calling out to her. She closed her eyes briefly and shook her drenched hair out of her face before tossing it back with one hand and slipping on her helmet.

She ran a hand over her horse's neck as she guided it into the starting gate, the ground beneath them muddy and unstable. It was a recipe for disaster to race on such a day but the crowd seemed oblivious to it, all they wanted was the rush that gambling brought.

She cleared her mind when the man behind her closed the door after her horse entered and dropped her head once the other riders started to enter the gate.

"I'm gonna screw you over," one of the jockeys commented snapping his whip against the railing in between them as Monica jumped slightly and looked ahead once more. The dark grey sky that greeted her eased her thoughts for a brief moment before the gates flew open and her horse lurched forward.

She gripped the reins close to her and rose her body off of the horse as the mare pounded the ground with everything that it had. The once impeccable black coat soon turned into a muddy mess as it stormed down the track, two other horses beside it running with everything that they had.

The panting that came from the animals stirred memories in her mind as brief flashes of white and gold resurfaced in her mind. She shook her head knowing that now wasn't the time to remember him. The jockey next to her shouted at his horse which startled her as she looked ahead and released the reins slightly giving her black mare more freedom as the horse galloped freely.

Lightning flashed above her stirring her memories even more as she remembered the man she had tried to forget for so long. Golden eyes flashed before her eyes, followed by the trademark scar on his lips. She shook her head once more when her horse neighed in front of her.

"You shouldn't be here, little girl!" the jockey to her right yelled above the storm as he rammed his horse into hers. She slipped slightly and gripped the reins as she regained her balance and glared at him slightly.

She recognized the man next to her; in fact he had been responsible for her brother's accident. He had done the same to her brother and unfortunately he had lost his balance and fallen off of the horse when it rammed into the railing.

"Judas, enough!" another jockey called from the back as he saw the man in question ram his horse into Monica. She tried to keep her attention on the track as the two men that were next to her started to box her in.

A clap of thunder startled the horses up front as they rounded towards the home stretch causing one of them to completely lose its balance and collapse onto the ground along with its jockey as the other riders who were behind him panicked and gripped on to their own horses.

"Shit, we're all going down," a jockey shouted from behind them as Monica's mind went blank upon seeing the collapsed horse in front of her. There was no way in heaven or hell that she could possibly stop the animal that she was riding in time to prevent the fall that awaited her. The jockeys beside her seemed to grasp that as well as they held on to the reins tighter and waited for the inevitable.

Time seemed to stop as another clap of thunder marked their fall; one by one the horses went down in a crescendo of neighing and yells. Monica flew off of her saddle as her horse went down and crashed on the muddy ground before skidding as the horses that had been behind her trampled over her own horse and stumbled on her body before going down as well.

The crowd went silent as cracks and gasps reached the fallen jockeys ears. More than half lay on the ground beside their horses unable to move. Monica found herself crying unable to even pick her arm up as she struggled to breathe. She was sure that at least half of her ribs were broken; it was a miracle how she was still breathing after horses of that magnitude stumbled over her body.

She couldn't move her own body and that alone horrified her, her horse lay besides her struggling to breathe as its chest heaved and its legs kicked hopelessly.

Monica closed her eyes and tried to think of anything that could distract her from the pain that she was feeling as a hand rested on her mud stained shoulder. She opened her eyes in confusion once she saw white robes beside her. She looked up in shock to see the assassin that she had tried to forget kneeling beside her with a concerned look on his face.

She didn't know what was going on but the moment she blinked he was gone. She could hear the ambulance rushing over to them followed by the assistants on the side of the track as she closed her eyes once more.

Her trainer rushed over to her body that lay sprawled on the ground next to other jockeys as he knelt down beside her and tried to comfort her. He brushed away a strand of drenched hair from her face as the rain continued to fall even harder.

"I'm sorry I didn't win," she whispered as she coughed up blood. Her trainer looked away only to find the other jockeys in similar or worse conditions with several paramedics crowded around each one. Monica was soon surrounded by them as well as they carried her body over to one of the ambulances and rushed her over to the hospital.

Her trainer stood up after they had rushed her towards the hospital and walked over to the once magnificent animal that lay on the ground suffering. He crouched beside the animal as its breathing started to get slower and slower.

He closed the animal's eyes once he noticed that it was no longer breathing, he knew that racing in the rain was a bad idea, several other trainers had agreed with him and had even suggested that they should just cancel the races for the rest of the day. Their suggestions however had fallen on deaf ears.

He remained by the horse that he had trained since it was a colt, and bowed his head once he heard that a jockey was dead. He knew it had been a bad idea to let her race when the conditions were this bad, but he hadn't realized the risks behind allowing her to mount her horse.

He stood and started to walk away before looking back at his horse once more and smiling bitterly.

"A little fall of rain…can hardly hurt you now."

OoOoOoOoOoOoO

Annalise leaned back on her chair as she stared at the painting that she had been working on for over a month. The paint beside her comforted her with its bright colors, the;y clashed with the grey sky outside which brought a light smile to her face.

The radio that played in the background only seemed to brighten her mood even more.

Beethoven.

"Moonlight Sonata," she whispered to herself setting her brush down for a moment as she looked around her apartment. Scattered paintings rested against every wall and lay upon every surface.

Over the past five years she had become a known painter; her abstract art had caught several eyes and had led her to fame in a short period of time.

She stretched and stood up from her current seat and left her canvas for a brief moment as she walked over to her kitchen to grab a glass of red wine. She pulled out a glass and poured the dark crimson liquid into it as she took a sip before walking over to her painting once more.

She sat down and reached for her brush once more as she worked on it with more determination than ever. The particular painting she was working on was for herself, she had no intention of selling it or even displaying it in a gallery.

She recalled the assassin that she had met over five years ago; despite the time that had passed she hadn't forgotten what he looked like. She didn't think she would ever forget him, how could she?

Her brush seemed to ghost over the canvas as she got more and more into her piece of art. The lighting that flashed occasionally through her window didn't seem to startle her in the least.

She stepped back slightly and frowned. The brown was completely off, she closed her eyes and tried to picture the Italian in her mind…she tried to remember the tone of his eyes.

It had been so long since she had last seen him…

She picked up her brush once more and applied a darker shade of brown over the lighter one. She pulled back again and analyzed it. She nodded to herself completely satisfied with the finished product.

She got up once more and allowed the painting to dry as she walked out of her studio and settled down on her leather couch before turning on the news. She watched with an uninterested look before directing her gaze towards her large window.

It was pouring outside, memories started to resurface before she blocked them out. She wouldn't remember them, she refused to. She had promised herself that she would forget him and everything related to him, it had proven more difficult than she had first thought.

It had been five years, but she hadn't been able to completely forget.

She often woke in the middle of the night holding nothing but the air before she realized that it had all been a dream. He would never be there, she doubted he remembered her. He was a womanizer after all; he probably already had another woman in his life. He would make her feel like she was his world before abandoning her and moving on to the next woman that caught his eye.

With that thought she stood from her couch and stormed into her studio before glancing at her most recent painting. A clap of thunder made her lose control as she threw her glass of wine at the canvas. It shattered upon contact and stained the painting as the wine soaked into the canvas and distorted the paint.

She closed her eyes before she walked over and cleaned up the shattered glass and tossed it out but not before she cut herself accidentally. She cursed and walked over to her large bathroom before looking around for a first aid kit.

She found it with a triumphant look on her face as she disinfected the large cut and started to bandage her hand as she headed back to her living room upon hearing the news anchor go on and on about a story.

"Three dead, five injured…one of the worst tragedies in racing history…" the voice said as she rushed into the room. She stood in front of the large television as they played back the race and the fall that had taken three lives.

Her face went pale when she recognized one of the riders.

She held her wounded hand as she rushed over to her coffee table and picked up her phone before dialing several numbers. Each of her friends only confirmed her worst fear; she hung up after the third call and dropped her phone on the couch before collapsing on it herself.

She had often argued with Monica over her hobby, she tattooed people for a living but she rode horses professionally when time permitted her to. Annalise had always argued with her telling her it wasn't worth the risk.

She got up off the couch and gathered her things before heading out of her apartment in a rush. She descended the stairs rapidly and headed towards her car wanting to get out of the rain as soon as possible. None of the people that she had called had been able to confirm if Monica had been one of the three dead jockeys, Annalise merely hoped that she hadn't been one of them.

She had seen Monica go down and get trampled by the horses, she had seen her body refusing to move, she wasn't going to go through that again. It had been hard enough five years ago seeing her go first when they were hanged by the creed.

She drove through the streets rapidly heading towards the hospital that they had told her to go to. She hoped that she was wrong, but deep down she knew not to hope for the best.

The world had shown her that not everything was sugar coated, things went wrong and there was nothing you could do about it. It was completely out of your hands, that alone frustrated her.

She hated not being able to control her life more, to forget what she wanted to forget and to start over again. Several men had already approached her and she had denied every single one of them. In her mind she couldn't find it in herself to forget the Italian that still haunted her thoughts.

She knew she had to start over, things would never be the same, they were never going to see the pair of assassins again. But something told her to hold on to the little bits of memories that she had of them, she couldn't explain it.

She would see flashes of white out of the corner of her eye from time to time when she was working in her studio, she would follow the figures but they would disappear as soon as she reached out to touch them. She wondered if they were there to haunt her or to remind her of the past, to reassure her that it wasn't over just yet…that things still had to be fixed.

Countless times she would see the Italian in her sleep, she would call out to him, she would ask him questions that she knew he would never answer. When she woke everything was back to normal and she was missing a piece of her soul once more.

She questioned herself endlessly, why was she still hung up on him…why couldn't she let him go?

She knew Monica had forgotten about Altair or at least tried her hardest to avoid talking about their brief time with the pair of assassins, so why couldn't she follow her lead and ignore the past?

She turned a corner sharply with the car as it skid slightly with the wet pavement as the radio in the background played 'A Little Fall of Rain,' from the musical, 'Les Miserables'. Annalise frowned as she turned the haunting music off with a sneer and gripped the steering wheel. Her knuckles turned white as she drove through the streets recklessly.

Night had already fallen upon the city; she cursed herself for living so far away from her partner and then proceeded to curse the hospital for being so far as well. She knew damning them to hell wouldn't make the matters any better but it was all she could do to ease her nerves.

She finally arrived as she parked her car and ran towards the entrance of the hospital as she caught her breath at the reception desk and informed the assistant about the person she was looking for.

"I'm sorry, but she is not available for any visits right now," the woman told her before she laughed lightly, "that was some fall she had…you'd expect someone with her experience to be less stupid and hold on to the horse better," the woman added as Annalise snapped and reached over the desk in a burst of pure fury.

"I don't know who you think you are, I'd wipe that smile off of your face if I was you unless you want me to do it for you," Annalise snarled pulling the woman towards her by gripping her collar. The woman immediately dropped her smile and called for security as two guards walked over and started to escort Annalise out of the hospital.

She growled when they shoved her outside as she straightened her jacket and walked over to her car as she slipped in and pulled out her phone once more as she dialed another number.

She waited impatiently for the person she had called to arrive as she stared at the hospital doors grimly, if anything happened to her partner in crime there would be hell to pay.

She fell back on her chair and closed her eyes before turning on the radio once more as she tried to ease her muscles from their tense state. She clenched and unclenched her hand in an attempt to calm her nerves as she stared up at the grey sky and then at her windshield as rain continued to pour down.

The constant thud of the water hitting the glass calmed her as she slipped into a troubled sleep. She waited for her friend to arrive and go into the hospital for her and find out how Monica was.

Five years had gone by, five years since she had seen her partner die in front of her, she wouldn't lose her again.

**Review! Ifs there's anything you guys would like to see happen, let me know in your reviews!**


	2. Otto E Mezzo

**Otto E Mezzo! **

**A/N: This chappie is all about Altair! Half way through it I realized that the pair of assassins were going to take up one chapter each, I noticed how long this one was and decided to stop it there since Ezio's part will be equally as long. The flashback is in Italics just in case some of you get confused :D well, enjoy! Oh and the remaining italic words that you'll find through out the chappie are merely references to Monica, since Altair refuses to think of her name. This is a long note, I'll end it here! Ciao.  
**

Altair had to hold back a sneer from forming on his face as he glanced around the crowded streets of Venice. The music that played in the background reminded him of the carnivals that would happen year round, he despised every second of it.

He stood leaning up against a wall watching as clowns and performers of every type passed him, his hood pulled low over his head. He knew coming here was a bad idea; he couldn't fathom why he had agreed to go in the first place.

A nearby hellaquin missed a turn on her backflip and ended up bumping straight into him, he grabbed the woman by her shoulders when she tried to regain her balance and pushed her away gently. She nodded back at him for the help before joining the crowd once more.

He uttered a low sigh which no one heard and dropped his head even more, this was unbearable. Everything reminded him of _her. _The people, the masks, the lights, the sounds...everything. It was loud and uncontrollable…like _she_ had been.

Altair turned away from it all, what good was it without _her_?

A hesitant hand on his shoulder brought him back to earth as he turned to look at the reason for his attendance at the carnival. The two women before him smiled at him brightly unaware of his mood.

Adrine hadn't changed in the bit over the last five years; her mood was still hopeful and bright despite everything that had happened in the creed. She had left Medina and had a higher place in the creed now; she managed everything for the assassins, from keeping records to handing them their contracts.

The other woman however was another story.

"Altair why must you be this tense when we are supposed to be enjoying this?" she asked quietly as her chocolate eyes locked with his golden pair. He looked away briefly before Adrine excused herself and gave the pair some space, she knew Altair better and by the looks of it he wasn't in the best of moods.

Adrine had argued with the other woman, she had told her to pick something other than a carnival, anything really. But the other had refused.

"Please, _habibi(1), _I do not wish to argue…not tonight," the other woman whispered to him as he cast sideways glance at her. His jaw clenched tightly, he had to forget about everything, including _her. _

The woman next to him reached up to cup his cheek, his gaze shot to hers in a heartbeat as she held it there for another moment. Her pleading expression only proved how worried she was about him. His hand reached up to hold her wrist in an iron grip causing her to whimper in pain.

He had moved on, perhaps not as fast as Ezio had but he too had come to realize that they would never see the pair of women again. The woman in his grasp was proof of that…although, from time to time he would find himself searching for _her _in everything she did.

They were both similar enough, and yet worlds apart. The one in his grasp often cowered away from him when he was raging and tried to soothe him later on when she was certain that the could approach him. He would almost snort at the act; _she_ would have been yelling back at him and shoving him around.

She wasn't _her_, she never would be. That in mind he realized he was holding on to her hand with too much force. He released her taking note of the watery look in her eyes…why hadn't she said anything? He reined himself in from snapping at her stupidity, he was capable of hurting her, she hadn't said anything despite the pain.

He stepped back and breathed in slowly trying to calm himself and sort his thoughts out before looking at her. She held her bruised hand with the other gently trying to ease the pain by rubbing it softly, the tears still held back in her eyes. Altair felt a pang of regret; he didn't know his own strength sometimes.

He sighed and reached out for her with one hand out in front of him, she didn't even think twice as she walked towards him and clung to his waist for dear life. He wrapped an arm around her small frame and held her to him as her sniffling reached his ears, he frowned feeling even more pathetic for hurting the woman that he had slowly grown to accept.

"_Ana aasif, azizity(2)," _he whispered to her as she looked up at him with tear streaked cheeks, she nodded before he kissed her cheek and pulled back. It was moments like this that made her love him even more. She buried her face in the crook of his neck as he caressed her black hair slowly. Black hair…he shook the thought away, he had to move on, he couldn't keep remembering the events from the previous five years.

_She _was gone.

The woman in his hold sighed unaware of the turmoil going on inside of him, she only saw the calm exterior. Despite the fact that he was an assassin he still had his moments when she could see his true self, see behind the mask that had been there for so long. She was merely lucky to have caught his attention before any other woman had.

She jumped when a nearby performer tossed a firework up in the air, the loud crack startling her as she clung on to Altair in fear. She could feel his chest vibrate as he chuckled despite the fact that she had nearly been scared to death.

Altair stared up at the bright sparks that filled the sky for a brief moment before his memories flooded with the other woman once more, of the countless nights of sitting there and listening to _her _as she talked about the time where she was from…

"_This world needs something, Altair," she said looking out of the window as he stared blankly at her from his position behind her. Altair would never understand the woman before him, that much he was sure of. "There isn't enough laughter, passion, or music!" she added grabbing his hand and walking closer to the window as she practically jumped up on the windowsill. _

_Altair's jaw nearly dropped open at her carelessness, one wrong move and she would be falling down the side of the cliff overlooking Masyaf. She was unfazed by the height at which she balanced her body; she looked back at him with humor in her eyes. _

"_Just one night…just one night," she sang to him in a tune he wasn't familiar with, he shook his head in both amusement and denial. The hand that she had been holding out for him dropped in disappointment before he answered. _

"_You crazy fool," he murmured as her expression practically lit up. Her laughter filled his ears as he watched her sway on the small space that she was standing on purposely. _

"_Those were actually the words that followed after mine," she told him amazed at the coincidence. She made a note to never forget it. Out of all the words that he could have chosen, he had actually said the lyrics that followed after hers. _

_She sighed in dejection while leaning on the side of the window and looked down at the raging river below, the roar of the water reminding her of the danger that she would be in should she slip. _

"_Get down!" Altair scolded as she smiled again, she would have asked if he could see into the future, the words that he spoke were all part of the song that she was thinking of. She shook her head at him before looking away and up at the sky. She frowned upon realizing that she would probably never get him to do anything with her that was remotely fun, it didn't matter if she sang, tripped down the stairs, or fell off a horse…the man refused to laugh with her, to let loose. She sighed before blowing off a strand of hair form her face, he was impossible. _

"_I think you can see in to the future, Altair," she commented looking back at him. He couldn't see into the future, but he was willing to bet his money on the fact that she would lose her balance and fall out of the window. _

"_That would be useful, but I cannot see into the future," he replied as her mouth hung open in shock. That was the most he had ever said to her, she counted the words and made sure to remember them, surely it wouldn't happen again. _

_Stiglitz jumped up with her and rubbed up against her leg as Altair flinched at the cat which caused it to jump in a startled fashion as it lost its footing and fell over the side of the window. Monica held back a panicked scream and managed to throw her hand out to catch the cat by its tail. She followed after Stiglitz upon losing her balance as well. Altair resisted the urge to roll his eyes as he lunged after her and managed to catch her by one of her ankles. _

"_Told you…you can see into the future!" she yelled up at him as she dangled over the side of the creed still holding on to Stiglitz by his tail. Altair looked down at her with an irritated look before a smirk tugged at the edges of his lips. He adjusted his hand making sure the grip he had on her was firm before he started to pull her up. _

_He wondered about the people who had been traveling and could see the creed, what an image that must have been. A cat hanging over the wall as a woman held on to its tail, the assassin holding on to her ankle being the only thing that kept them from falling to their death. He would have to tell Ezio about it; no doubt the Italian would get a kick out of that one. _

"_You could have died," he scolded once he pulled her up and set her down on firm ground. The cat jumped out of her arms and stretched before heading over to lie down on Altar's bed. The assassin stared after the feline with hate. _

"_I don't think you'd let me die in such a dull manner," she told him as he looked at her in concern; she walked over to the cat and picked it up while playing with it. She sat down on the edge of his bed as he continued to look at her, his concerned look turning into a protective one. _

_She somehow managed to amuse him, even in the direst of situations. There was no way he could let her go. She wouldn't die…not when he had a say in it, nothing could possibly tear her away from him now…_

Altair snapped out of the flashback when he remembered that he _had_ lost her, despite everything he hadn't been there to stop the bastards from hanging her. He closed his eyes briefly, that hadn't been the only thing that they had done.

They had also whipped them and tortured them…

"Altair, can we please leave? I'm sure Ezio will find his way back," the woman in his hold told him as he broke away from his thoughts and looked down at her. He had to move on, he had to forget about _he_r completely, after all he had another woman to protect now.

She stared up at him with those eyes that reminded him so much of _her, _and found himself comparing them again. He stopped himself; he had to cease doing that.

"Of course, Maria," he replied as she smiled up at him and held his hand leading him through the crowd and back to the bureau.

He merely wondered if he had made the right choice by moving on.

Part of him wished he hadn't part of him refused to forget.

**(1)- My love**

**(2)-Im sorry, my darling  
**

**Review, I cannot stress it enough :D Review!  
**


	3. El Tango De Roxanne

**El Tango De Roxanne**

**A/N: Well, it took me a while but here it is, enjoy!**

"_Never fall in love with a woman who sells herself, it always ends bad…bad!" _

_-Narcoleptic Argentinian, Moulin Rouge _

A distant violin cried a mournful tune, the sound flooding the now empty streets. The notes echoed off of the stone walls and found their way into an assassin's luxurious darkened room. His blank brown eyes stared at the ceiling wearily, he couldn't sleep with the constant crying of the instrument outside.

The light that had been present in his chocolate gaze had died a long time ago; he no longer saw the need to greet life with a smile. He was too tired now a days to put up a façade for others to view, not that it mattered, he cared little for them anyway. The only ones he would attempt to compose himself for would be Altair, Adrine, Maria, and Anna.

Ah yes, Anna.

She was something completely separate from the others.

Ezio sat up on the bed, the black silk sheets pooling around his waist as he brought a hand up to cover his face. He couldn't deal with the headaches that plagued him constantly. His lip curled into a sneer as he looked out the window nearby and fought the urge to kill the lone musician who kept disturbing his sleep.

He wasn't in the mood for listening to music, much less a violin in the middle of the night. He sighed softly, he couldn't afford to make much noise less he wake the sleeping figure next to him. He dropped his hand in defeat and rolled his shoulders trying to get them back from the numb state that loomed over them.

His bones cracked as soon as he moved and turned his back slightly, he tensed and looked at the figure next to him. A few seconds went by, no movement. Satisfied with the fact that he hadn't woken the light sleeper next to him he rose from the bed careful not to stir the body next to him.

He held the black sheet around his waist as he walked over to the large window and looked up at the star filled sky. The full moon illuminated the vast array of scars that littered his chest, all of them much too recent for Altair's liking. Ezio couldn't blame him though; he had grown more careless with defending himself and countering the blades that were often thrust towards him. What was the point in fighting the inevitable? He was bound to die, whether it came late in life or sooner than he expected, the latter seemed more reasonable given his profession.

He uttered a soft laugh, profession. He didn't think it could be called that anymore, he had lost sight of the purpose of the creed. He no longer paused to hear his victim's pleas before he slit their throats. He no longer hesitated when he ran across a guard; he no longer cared if he had to execute a woman. His body had grown cold, his mind had obtained an apathetic view towards the world.

He knew it was wrong; hell everything was wrong in his life now. He didn't know who he was anymore, and the thing that terrified him the most was the fact that he didn't seem bothered by that. His mind had run that through a couple of times before the realization hit him, he suddenly understood Altair.

Losing yourself was horrifying; he had followed in his mentor's footsteps. He had become what he had dreaded from day one, an unforgiving assassin. He hadn't wanted that, but there was no way he could go back now. Not after everything he had done, all the blood he had spilt, all the lives he had ruined.

The one light he had in his life had been torn away from him; he didn't even have a chance to fix things. There was nothing to be fixed with an empty shell, an unmoving body, a still heart. He snorted at the thought and pushed it away immediately, he would not remember the very thing that had caused his decadence.

A soft sigh startled him as a pale arm ghosted over the spot where he had just been followed by a soft downward dip in the delicate lips of the woman upon finding it empty. She picked her head up and cracked open one eye revealing a startling deep blue iris searching blindly in the darkness for him.

"Ezio, _amore mio, _come to bed," she whispered to him patting the spot next to her with a small boney hand. The assassin's eyes flickered towards her for a brief moment and outside once more. The stars have not ceased to amaze him, the flicker still despite everything that's happened over the last five years.

He turned away from the window but not before hurling a flowerpot at the lone musician who in turn scampered away as the flower came flying towards him. Ezio smiled despite himself after catching a glimpse of his past through the act.

Her turned away and settled down next to the woman once more, her pale arm wrapping around his waist as a habit by now. She settled against his chest and sighed softly tracing the muscles on his arm to keep herself occupied as Ezio stared straight ahead.

Lavender.

The scent hit him and sent his mind reeling back five years once more. He struggled with the memories, tried to suppress them but failed miserably as it all came rushing back.

Blond hair, just like Anna's…pale skin, just like Anna's…hazel eyes, _unlike _Anna's.

Ezio shifted away from the woman resting against him earning himself a glance from her as her brow furrowed.

"Ezio, I sometimes wonder what goes through that head of yours," she commented recovering from his rejection and resuming her place next to him. He didn't push her away; his mind was somewhere else by now. She had stirred too many memories; moments came rushing back at him.

He wished he hadn't remembered _her. _

"_Ezio, I sometimes wonder what goes through that head of yours," she said laughing before biting into an apple he had handed to her moments before. She enjoyed the fruit while it lasted knowing it was hard to come by during the long trip. She couldn't thank Ezio enough; she was sick of eating rabbit and other unnamable things. _

_The scent lingered on her, bitter but sweet at the same time. _

_Apple._

_He would never forget it, come what may he would never forget her. _

_She sat in front of him poking the fire with a twig she had found nearby, her eyes bright with amusement. He sat there looking at her in amazement; he wondered what god had decided to send her his way. There was no denying she had been meant for him since the moment he first laid eyes on her. _

"_So what do you plan on doing when you guys finish this job?" she asked as she continued to assault the fire with the small wooden twig. He glanced up at her and smiled briefly before it dropped just as quickly as it came. _

_He hadn't thought about that. He shrugged as she nodded in understanding. _

_There was a part of him that refused to let her out of his sight, seeing her in another man's arms was out of the question. She was his, he didn't care how many men he had to kill or jump over, she belonged with him. _

_He thought about her for a brief moment, since her arrival he hadn't been involved with any other women, several had called on him and several had even shown up looking for him back in Jerusalem according to periodic reports from Malik. _

_He dropped his gaze upon the sudden realization, how could he have let something like that slip his mind? _

_Perhaps it was different now, perhaps she was different. _

"_Hey! Hello, are you there?" she asked waving her arms over her head to catch his attention. His eyes shot over to look at her, he didn't know how to explain it, how to explain her. _

"_You are peculiar," he murmured, she glanced up at him unsure of whether he had said something. She shrugged upon seeing his gaze locked on the fire. He glanced up at her and locked eyes with her, she offered him a smile as he motioned over to her. _

_She obeyed reluctantly and walked over to him taking a seat next to him as he turned to look at her with his trademark grin. _

"_What?" she asked confused as he continued to stare, he shook his head and laughed slightly. She would never cease to amaze him; her eyes reflected the stars above her. _

_He knew why he kept her close, why he protected her, why he never tired of her presence. _

"_You are an amazing woman," he whispered into her ear as she looked at him seriously. Was he merely messing with her or had he actually meant it?_

"_Ezio, don't mess with me," she told him a slight frown on her lips as his own met hers briefly. Her breath hitched at the unexpected contact. Her lips barely touched his but she enjoyed it nevertheless. _

"_I meant every word, amore mio," he told her as she blushed deeply upon hearing the endearment. She pulled away and rested her head on his shoulder; he welcomed the contact and pulled her closer. _

_Her eyelids grew heavy, she was fighting off the urge to sleep. She didn't want to close her eyes for fear of messing up the moment; Ezio on the other hand was having none of that. _

"_Sleep, bella," he murmured caressing her dirty blond hair. She smiled against him and huddled closer to avoid the cold air that fell over them. He welcomed the warmth of her body and made a mental note to remember that night. _

"Go to sleep, Ezio."

Anna's voice broke his thoughts.

He stared at her, her blond hair shone brightly despite the darkness of the room; her tired blue eyes looked at him with adoration. He stared back at her trying his hardest to restrain from looking at her too much, whenever he did he started to remember _her. _

"I am trying," he commented looking away slightly. She pulled his attention back to her by cupping his cheek. She gave him a look that told him he wouldn't enjoy whatever came next.

"Ezio, I have to go tomorrow night, the customer has requested a _meeting _with me," she told him as his eyes shot over to see her. She stared back trying her hardest to stop herself from dropping her smile as his own lips dropped.

"No," he replied almost immediately as she closed her eyes and tried to recollect her thoughts.

"We cannot keep this up," she told him backing away slightly, "you know what I am Ezio, I cannot hide like this forever, I haven't reported back to the house in over three days," she continued. "If I keep this up I will no longer be welcome," she finalized as he sighed.

"You don't have to go back," he added as she shook her head at him and smiled despite herself.

"Tigers don't change their stripes, _amore," _she laughed as she pulled away from him. He knew that but what they had was something outside of her normal routine. While she would leave after getting paid with other men she stayed the night with him and left as late as she possibly could.

She loved him dearly but her job restrained her. She would have quit long ago, the man in charge of her however had other plans. He had his way with taking care of his pets; especially if he found out they ran away or didn't report to a customer.

She was a courtesan, there was no denying that. A courtesan unable to escape the life she had gotten into. She wouldn't have gone into the 'business' had she met Ezio sooner, it was impossible to get out of now. She would have to bid her time and distance herself slowly.

She turned away from Ezio who was sulking by now upon realizing that she would leave tomorrow.

"I am sorry, _amore," _she whispered into his ear as he turned towards her, in that brief moment he could almost swear that he was seeing _her._

He couldn't save _her _but he would get Anna out of the life she was trying to escape from.

He loved her.

He resisted the urge to laugh at himself; he fell in love with a whore…who would have thought he would have ended that way?

But as he turned away and started to drift off into sleep, he couldn't help but wonder…had he done the right thing?

His mind immediately answered his own question for him.

Of course not, this was wrong.

What had the world turned him into?

**Review, let me know what you think! Any requests or things you want to see happen? Let me know :D  
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	4. The Show Must Go On

**The Show Must Go On**

**A/N: Well, not my best chapter but I'll leave it up to you guys to decide, bare with me on this one the next shall be better my dear readers! I realized how many of you guys had reviewed and felt awful for making you wait so long, enjoy!**

Monica held her side in pain as she walked through the streets of Venice with Annalise. Her partner walked ahead, her eyes wide in wonder while Monica trailed at the back hissing from time to time when the stinging from the stiches became unbearable.

It had been over a week since she had been dismissed, or rather left, from the hospital. Annalise had insisted that they take a break from everything, she had dropped her art and had arranged for the trip in which they currently found themselves in.

"This place is amazing! I could do so much with a little bit of paint and a canvas, it's glorious! Can you feel it?" Annalise called back as Monica rolled her eyes at her partner's enthusiasm.

"I can defiantly feel it," Monica shot back gritting her teeth in pain when her chest protested from being overworked; the doctor had mentioned something about that. Then again she had already been walking away when he had told her.

"Can you say, 'Phantom of the Opera'!" Annalise called back with excitement as she stood in front of Venice's opera house, La Fenice, while looking around for Monica upon finding her gone. Out of all of the people to avoid seeing the opera house she would have been the last person on Annalise's mind.

"Oh, I forgot about your ribs," Annalise cried rushing back to her partner who stood leaning against the railing of a bridge with her head hung low. Monica slapped her hand away when Annalise tried to help her, the blond however didn't take any offense to the action. If it were her she would have probably thrown Monica over the bridge down onto the water below.

"Do you need help, should I-" Annalise started before Monica growled and silenced her.

"I am perfectly fine," she barked at her partner as Annalise jumped back, the tone that Monica had used startled her. She quickly recovered knowing that it was merely the pain that had caused her to snap, without further questioning she looked down and managed to get the attention of a gondolier as he pulled up next to an opening on the street and waited for the pair.

"Come on, were heading back," she whispered to Monica as she wrapped an arm around her shoulders and supported her partner's weight as she led them to the waiting boat. She helped Monica and then stepped in herself before taking a seat in front of her partner and nodding at the man to proceed.

"You shouldn't have left the hospital so soon," Annalise scolded her as Monica's chest rose and fell at an alarmingly quick pace. Annalise shook her head in dismay, she knew she was trying to fight through the pain.

"I don't like hospitals," Monica mumbled back as she held her side and cringed when a searing pain tore through her. The gondolier threw the woman a concerned look before he turned his head to look at the blond who was smiling sympathetically at her.

"I know you don't but this is absurd, stop moving or you'll reopen the goddamn stiches," Annalise snapped as Monica tried her beset to stay put. The agony that her body was in however was making it an extremely difficult task.

She shook her head to avoid losing consciousness as Annalise looked around; they were nowhere near a hospital. She could tell something was terribly wrong; it was starting to worry her. She looked down at the water and furrowed her brow when a strange feeling shot through her body. She rose her head to look sideways and noticed Monica was also looking in the same direction.

"Did you feel that?" Annalise asked as Monica nodded with difficulty. "What's over there?" Annalise asked the man who directed the gondola through the twisting paths of the city.

"It is nothing special, just more housing and a museum," he replied as Monica continued to look in the same direction. She could feel something that pulled her towards it, she couldn't explain it, she had never had the strange feeling course through her.

"Take us over," Monica told the gondolier as the man glanced down with a questioning glance. A moment ago she had been writhing in pain and now she had the nerve to give him orders.

"Raggaza, there is nothing-" he started before Monica cut him off.

"I said take us over," she growled half in pain and half in demand.

"Very well," he replied directing the boat in the direction they had demanded. Darkness started to fall upon them as they arrived. Monica stumbled off of the boat while Annalise jumped and landed gracefully beside her.

She turned and threw a couple of bills at the gondolier before heading off in the direction in which she felt drawn to, it was as if her body was being brought back to life. She hadn't felt like this in years, the last time she had she had still been with…she shook the memory off. The assassin was long gone; she kept telling herself that she wasn't doing this for him.

Monica on the other hand walked through the crowded street, the faces around her blank as the museum came into view. She hissed when she felt something warm running down her side, she cursed when she noticed she had just reopened her stiches. She dismissed the wound and continued to walk bumping into people leaving a trail of blood in her wake.

They both stepped through the entrance and walked through the elegant halls feeling the strange pull growing stronger. People started to leave after the guards at the entrance pointed out that it was nearly time to lock up the doors for the night.

The pair of women ignored the warning and made their way through the museum until they reached a particular exhibit. They both froze as they looked at a strange metallic square shaped box with strange designs carved into it. The peculiar lines that made up the design glowed as the pair approached it, the desire to reach out and touch it growing stronger.

"Leonardo Da Vinci," Monica read as she looked at the label that stood beside the mechanical box, "I wonder what the bastard had in mind when he created it," she mumbled as she glanced down at her bloodstained hand.

"It has and 'M' carved into the side," Annalise commented eerily glancing at the box from a different angle. Monica looked at her out of the corner of her eye before resuming her observations.

"Well, it has an 'A' as well," Monica pointed out as they both stared at each other. Surely it wasn't meant for them, the inventor hadn't even met them. "Why did you pick Venice," Monica questioned as a nearby guard looked at the pair and then at the blood that ran down the waist of the black haired woman.

"I don't know," Annalise replied stepping closer to the box. The light that had been shining through the lines seemed to grow brighter as she reached out to touch it. Her hand barely managed to ghost over the tip of the box before she pulled back with a whimper.

"The damn thing cut me!" she cried in surprise pulling her finer back to see the large cut that had been made. Monica stared at the box as the blood that had been left on it disappeared through the lines in the design, the once white light taking a shade of pink.

"Hey you there, what do you think you're doing?" a guard asked as Monica reached out and picked up the box with her bloodstained hand. Just as she had predicted she felt the box drain the blood around it as the pink turned into a deep shade of scarlet.

"Do you think this thing brought us here?" Annalise asked as she noticed the guard running at them with a baton in hand. Monica glanced at him as well with a blank stare before Annalise placed her hand on the cube once more.

"Stop!" the guard yelled before both women felt a searing pain on the palm of their hands. They tossed the cube up in the air knowing it had been the source of their pain before a blinding white light surrounded them.

"Not again," Monica mumbled before the floor beneath them disappeared.

They felt themselves falling once more, both of them expecting to hit the ground or be impaled by the statues that decorated the buildings below.

In those brief seconds that they fell Monica could feel herself frown, she didn't want to be back. Not after what happened the last time they were there, she had planned to let things be the damn cube in the museum however seemed to have enjoyed destroying her plans.

Annalise on the other hand wasn't too thrilled to be back either, how could they know that the pair of assassins were still alive? For all they knew they could have been sent back into a different time, they could be dead by now.

They didn't have any more time to think their predicaments through, however, due to them landing on a red and white tarp. The soft material tore as they fell through and landed in the middle of a circus ring.

The performers around them stopped and the audience gasped upon seeing the sudden interruption, both women threw glances at each other before picking themselves up and staring at the large crowd around them.

"Sorry, we missed our cue, we came in too early!" Annalise exclaimed nervously dusting off her leather jacket as the crowd nodded in understanding while others continued to stare in an unconvinced manner.

Annalise glancing sideways at Monica noticing that she was no longer bleeding and her wound had closed up, she had a feeling that the box had something to do with that. She held the thought in and smiled before looking at the crowd trying to convince them that it had all been planned.

"On with the show!" Monica added with a fake smile before she grabbed Annalise by the back of the neck and led her towards the back of the large tarp. Both of them practically rushed out before they bumped straight into someone.

"Where do you two think you are going?" a harsh voice scolded as Monica rubbed her nose in pain and looked up at the man she had practically run into. Her breath caught in her throat upon seeing the ringmaster glaring eye daggers at them.

His bright red jacket caused her to squint her eyes due to the blinding sun that hit the material. Annalise also stared at the lion tamer who stood behind the ringmaster top hat in hand with a whip in the other, his displeased frown indicating that he hadn't enjoyed her throwing him off balance.

"We were just going, sorry for interrupting your show," Annalise added quickly as she threw Monica a warning glance. The other nodded as both women turned and started to walk away before they were caught by the back of their jackets and held in place.

"Someone has to pay for the damage that you made," the ringmaster added bitterly as they turned to look at each other and then at the large tear that they had made on the pricey looking tarp.

Suddenly the idea of being back displeased them even more; in fact they almost wished they could be back in their time. They cursed the strange box that had brought them back and they cursed Da Vinci for creating it.

"You two will have to work to pay us back, unless you would like us to call the guards on you," the lion tamer told them as both women grimaced at the idea of paying them back for something that they had no control over. The two men resisted the urge to save themselves the trouble of having to train them and hand them over to the guards merely because they were running short on man power.

Annalise was just about to point out the fact that they hadn't meant to wreck anything when she stopped herself, it would sound odd if she told them they were from the future and had just fallen from the sky with no control over where they landed. She ran that through her head a couple of times before realizing how insane it sounded. She shut her mouth instead and remained quiet.

Their clothing drew no attention to them due to the performers having stranger outfits than them; she silently thanked whatever force impeded them from asking about them.

"Here we go again," Monica added as she was shoved through the entrance once more and handed the reins of a horse while Annalise was handed a bull hook.

It dawned on them that there was no way out of their predicament when the ringmaster called over a performer and instructed him to keep a close watch on the pair of women that had just crashed through the tarp.

They would be here for a while.

"What the hell is this for?" Annalise asked the lion tamer as he glanced back at her and then at the stick in her hands. He laughed at the expressions on the two women before replying.

"It's for the elephants, welcome to the circus!"

**Review! Well they're finally back, any suggestions? Throw em at me!**


	5. You Wronged Me

**You Wronged Me**

**A/N: Well, Im amazed with all the responses this story has been getting so I decided to update just for you guys. This is where things will start to get slightly ugly, so read on and enjoy! **

**Sidenotes:  
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**penstrokenxay: Well I was considering it but adding another assassin into the story would complicate things too much, so I wouldnt get my hopes up to much! After all, writing for Ezio and Altair is hard enough without Connor in the mix XD **

**Random Person 94: I would mind working in a circus but then again I would mind that I'm being forced to work, its a love hate relationship although I can see where you're coming from :D**

**Firestar001: You and I think alike when it comes to this story ;D and as I said before to my other reviewer, as much as I would like to add Connor into the story it would be too much to juggle into it, its hard enough with the pair of assassins that are currently in it lmao :D**

**DanAlaya: Dont worry, I wont torture you guys and make you wait another four chapters, one more at the most! And I can see what you mean, after reading this you'll realize that their reunion will be far from happy and cheerful XD **

**wolf-mimi: Yes, they did go back. Lmfao, I just thought I should clear that up ;D**

The sounds of hooves pounding the muddied ground thundered around her. She closed her eyes to try and concentrate despite the neighing of the animals circling around her, heads bobbing in agitation while their nostrils flared in annoyance.

"You have to time everything, one slip and you'll be trampled," a voice warned her as her brown eyes snapped open and shot over to the figure, she narrowed them warningly at him before directing her gaze at the horses once more. She already knew the feeling; it wasn't one that she planned on experiencing again anytime soon.

"Why in the rain?" Monica asked slightly disturbed as the hooves kicked up mud which splattered on her boots making her step back.

"If you can keep your balance in the rain, you can keep it on stage," the lion tamer, Gabriel, pointed out as he tipped his hat forward making the rain fall off from the brim before he straightened his back and looked at her. He cracked the whip in his hand down harshly, immediately the group of five horses stopped circling the woman and turned to look at him.

He whistled before they began to run around once more, she noticed they were slower than before. Perhaps that would make her task easier.

"Gabriel we've been trying this for weeks, they aren't going to let me on," Monica added pulling her sleeve down to hide a particular nasty purple bruise. She recalled all of the falls she had last time, the horses weren't planning on letting her near them, it didn't matter how long she did it for they would always throw her off.

They were far from paying their debt to the circus, they had been assured, however, that after a few shows they would be free to go.

If they could come up with an act to entertain the masses.

Much to Monica's dismay the woman who had done the number with the black and white horses had received a rather nasty kick from one of the mares. Gabriel had insisted she attempt to try the act but so far they had been unsuccessful.

The beasts were uncontrollable and as far as Monica could see, still wild.

"Give it a try," Gabriel persisted as Monica sighed and followed the horses with her eyes trying to see which one was the slowest. She had a higher chance of mounting it if she could pick out the weakest of the group.

She closed her eyes as the sounds they made entered her mind, she opened them quickly and grabbed on to the black horse that had just run by before swinging her leg over and pulling herself up by its mane.

She managed to keep her balance for a few seconds before the horse bobbed its head at her and started to neigh. She shook her head slightly and understood the animal, it could feel her nervousness and uncertainty, by experience she knew her emotions affected the animal beneath her.

She hadn't been on a horse since the fall she had over two years ago and riding one without a saddle unnerved her. She could see the fall through her eyes as if she were reliving it, her hand faltered and let go of the horse's mane before the animal threw her off.

She landed harshly on the ground before skidding on the mud beneath her. The impact was like a dream to her, she could have sworn that she was back in her time, falling off of the race horse once more. A hesitant hand on her shoulder made her head snap in the direction, everything was so familiar to her.

She sighed in relief when she didn't see the assassin that her eyes had landed on last time, instead Gabriel knelt before her, whip in hand while rain hit her face from the brim of his hat. She scrunched up her nose as she felt the water hit her nose, upon seeing this the lion tamer threw her an apologizing smile before backing away.

"That was one of your best falls," he joked offering her a hand to pick herself up. She rolled her eyes at him before placing her hand in the one he had outstretched for her. He pulled her up and faced the horses once more which seemed to prance around the pair with glee, if he didn't know any better he could have sworn the black mare was smiling.

Monica stared down grimly at her mud stained clothes before she looked at the horses with slight sadness, she had lost her touch. She could no longer ride like she used to, it was as if a fear had implanted itself in the back of her mind preventing her from riding like before.

"You push her too much, Gabriel," a woman's voice commented from within the tarp that stood a few feet away from the pair. Monica turned her head to see who it had been and was greeted with quite a sight. Before her stood a brightly dressed harlequin, her striped outfit consisted of gold and dark purple with matching boots. A golden mask shielded her face from her view which only seemed to peak her interest as Monica looked at Gabriel and noticed the apparent loathing in the man's eyes.

"Caha, strange to see you without your brother," Gabriel commented eyeing the clown before him with caution. She had a reputation that preceded her wherever she went for more than her glorious acrobatic skills.

"Cahin is busy at the moment," the woman replied stepping forward with an amazing grace. Monica followed her with her eyes; she had a strange feeling about the woman that she couldn't quite place.

The harlequin remained under the cover of the tarp, tilting her head in what Monica could only guess was annoyance at the rain around them. Gabriel drew closer to Monica out of instinct as the clown tilted her head once more in curiosity at her.

"She is new, I have not seen her before," her voice stated as Gabriel nodded. The woman nodded back slightly before outstretching her hand to Monica. "Clearly horses are not your calling, you look like you have been thrown off several times," she pointed out noticing the hidden bruises beneath the younger woman's clothing.

Monica wrapped her arms around her frame in a desperate attempt to hide them from her prying eyes, she had to give it to the woman, she was extremely observant.

"Angelo has ordered her to work with me from now on," Caha told the pair as Monica shifted in her spot slightly interested with working with the woman before her. At the same time she didn't want to leave Gabriel either, over the past few weeks the two had gotten used to their company. He was the only one other than Annalise with whom she could talk to within the large circus.

"Why the sudden change?" Gabriel asked gripping the whip in his hand tighter. Monica glanced sideways at him noticing the act before shifting once more; she could feel the tension in between the two. It was driving her mad.

"Do not question his authority, lion tamer," Caha hissed through the mask before motioning for Monica to walk to her. Monica looked at Gabriel for approval before the woman's voice cut through the silence once more. "You no longer answer to him, there is no need for his permission," she snapped at Monica who in turn jumped at the tone that had been used on her.

She gently placed her hand on Gabriel's arm as she walked away from him and over to the harlequin that stood underneath the tarp.

"Look at the poor girl, Gabriel," Caha hissed upon noticing more bruises and cuts on her arms and shoulders. Monica looked at Gabriel who was seething by now; she tried to assure him that it hadn't been his fault by looking at him with a small grin.

"Come, we must get you out of those clothes," the harlequin added motioning Monica to follow as she started to walk into the tarp, "I recommend you do the same Gabriel, I would not want you smelling like the cats that you work with," she commented before letting the flap of the tarp fall from her grasp.

"I can't see anything," Monica commented finding herself shrouded in darkness as she reached out blindly for something to grab onto.

"Your eyes shall get accustomed to the darkness," Caha's voice told her. Monica turned her head trying to pinpoint where the harlequin was. She wasn't a trained assassin; she failed at finding the other woman.

She cursed foully when her leg crashed into the side of a table; her hands were placed firmly upon the surface before some clothes were placed on top of them. She glanced down trying to see what they were before a candle illuminated the dark room.

She stared down at the outfit and found herself grinning. It matched Caha's own except for the small detail that her color scheme was black and white unlike the other woman's gold and purple outfit.

"I expect you to take care of it, the tailor who does them for us does not like his work to be torn or bloodied," Caha told her as Monica spun around noticing the harlequin was directly behind her. The woman moved away from her once more and disappeared from her view before Monica's brow furrowed.

'Torn or bloodied,' the words kept running through her thoughts.

"What is it that you do, exactly?" Monica asked running her hand over the soft fabric noticing the detail that had been etched into every stich. Caha reappeared with a small black box; she set it down and placed both of her hands on it before looking at Monica.

"We are Angelo's personal 'assistants' if you will," Caha told her as Monica tilted her head in confusion. The other woman laughed lightly before continuing, "We do whatever he asks of us, we are the heart of this circus, we keep it running smoothly for him," she added before turning her head slightly, "at any costs."

Monica nodded her head, suddenly understanding. The harlequin before her was like the boss' right hand man or woman in this case.

"We have recently lost a good number of men, we need to replace them as soon as possible," Caha continued, her shoulders recovering from the drop they had seconds before. She pushed the box forward to Monica who exchanged glances at it and at the harlequin before her.

"We will push you until you can no longer stand, until your muscles cry out for rest, until your body can no longer support itself," the harlequin warned her as Monica's hands rested above the box. She stopped, the urge to open it and look at its insides suddenly leaving her.

"Why me, why not someone with more experience?" Monica asked stepping back as Caha laughed once more, the chilling tone to it made the younger woman suppress a shudder.

"How old are you?" Caha asked as Monica tilted her head before answering.

"Twenty three," she stated as the harlequin shook her head in what seemed amusement.

"You are just a pup," she explained, "you can still be trained unlike other candidates."

Monica nodded before she paused once more.

"What about Annalise?" she asked, despite all of the years that had passed they were a team, were one went the other wasn't far behind.

"Cahin is with her as we speak, Angelo has agreed to let you go once your debt is paid, one year with us is all he asks," Caha answered as Monica stepped forward once more. She had nothing to lose, life was unpredictable, wherever her decision took her it couldn't be worse from where she currently was.

She opened the box to reveal a mask, exactly like Caha's only hers seemed a bit darker. Her black mask contrasted with the golden one of the harlequin standing beside her. The lips on the mask had a slight frown on them with a tear on one side of the mask. She picked the prop up carefully and held it in her hands, she couldn't have asked for a more fitting gift.

"Welcome to our family, welcome to Archaos Circus," Caha told her as Monica stared at the mask. She had just sealed her fate. She placed the mask back into its box and stared out at the storm that raged outside through the flapping tarp.

A strange feeling settled over her as she held her shoulder with one hand, her hand tracing the scars that resided beneath her clothing.

"Your training shall start tomorrow, _in bocca al lupo," _Caha told her before stepping out of the tarp leaving Monica to her thoughts. The Italian language stirred her thoughts causing her to recall memories that had been buried in her mind for years.

She growled bitterly remembering why she was in that particular predicament in the first place.

"_Crepi il lupo," _she snarled answering Caha back. Her hand continued to trace the scars that her back still bore as she wished death upon every assassin that had wronged her, especially the one who had ordered her execution.

Her eyes closed before realizing what she had truly wanted the moment she crashed through the tarp several weeks ago, what she had wished for the moment she realized she was back.

She wanted the Arab's bleeding heart in her hand so she could stab it just as he had done to her all those years ago.

She wanted his death above everything else.

OoOoOoOoOoOoO

"No, you have to use you voice with the animal, it won't obey you if you just stand there and poke it with the hook," a voice scolded as Annalise shrunk beneath is imposing figure.

"I'm sorry, it's just-"

"You have to start treating the animal like an inferior being, you can't be equals when you're on stage," the hyena tamer, Micah, shouted at her cutting her off.

Annalise realized why he was the trainer for all of the animals, his intimidating posture would no doubt reduce the bravest man into a shivering mess. His piercing green eyes locked on her doubtful hazel orbs as she looked down at the ground.

The bull hook in her hand hung uselessly to the side, she couldn't bring herself to hurt the magnificent animal that stood beside her. She knew there was another way of telling the animal what to do, one that didn't involve flaying the animal whenever it stepped in the wrong direction.

"Would you prefer I do it?" Micah asked, his voice threatening, as Annalise's head immediately snapped up and looked between him and the elephant beside her. The last thing she wanted was for him to have the bull hook in his possession.

She knew he was skilled when it came to punishing animals, she had seen it too many times now to forget. She wondered how she could stand to be in his presence, he sickened her to no extent. She couldn't comprehend how he could sleep at night when his clothes often bore the bloodstains of the animals who cowered in their cages licking away at their fresh wounds.

She had often stayed up the whole night with the animals he whipped or hit, the routine was all too familiar to her now. She would clean away the blood on the harsh cuts and lacerations through the bars, more often than not the animals themselves would press their bodies up against the bars to give her more access.

Annalise shuddered at the thought of his latest victim, she had stayed up the whole night with the white horse that had kicked its performer off. The gashes on the animal had turned its glorious white pelt into a mess of crimson and pink. It was a miracle how the animal had still been breathing after Micah had stepped out of the stables; whip in hand which dripped with fresh blood even then.

He was the reason the other trainers and performers trusted their animals; they knew they would not obey their commands for fear of being beaten into submission.

"That animal will not move if you do not take that bull hook and use it," he warned Annalise as she held the stick in her hands and rose it up to the elephant once more.

"Move," she murmured barely touching the skin of the animal with the hook for fear of hurting it, Micah let out a frustrated sigh as she continued to urge the animal. "Luna, please move," she begged using the elephant's name as she tapped it on the shoulder once more with the hook this time making it a feather like touch.

The elephant before her refused to move, she was starting to regret her weakness, if only she could put her guilt past her like Micah did she would have been done with the elephant by now.

"Micah, she is never going to be able to move that bull, and you know it," a silky voice called from the shadows as Annalise dropped her hand and in doing so the hook. Micah laughed slightly and turned his head upwards; Annalise followed his eyes and found nothing but the ropes that the acrobats used for their acts.

"Stop this unnecessary teasing, Cahin," the hyena tamer growled trying to locate the man by tearing through the tarp with calculative eyes. A mocking laugh was the only thing that he got as a response as Annalise started to look around as well.

"You two look like you have lost something," Cahin's voice commented as Annalise and Micah turned to look at the stands only to find them empty. They could have sworn that the voice had come from there moments ago. "Or perhaps someone," Cahin added as the pair turned towards the entrance only to find it empty.

"I grow tired of your games, Cahin," Micah snarled cracking his whip in a warning ready to bring it down on the other man as soon as he showed himself. Annalise found herself enjoying the hyena tamer's distress, for once he was the one who wasn't in control.

"I've been here the whole time," Cahin's voice chuckled as Annalise turned to look at the elephant beside her. A man stood on its back, dressed in the most intriguing outfit she had seen so far. She wondered how she hadn't noticed he had been standing there the whole time.

"You imbecile," Micah barked before snapping the whip over at him. Cahin rolled his shoulders before placing his arm in front of his face. Annalise closed her eyes ready to hear the whip connect with his skin. The leather whip wrapped around Cahin's arm much to Micah's surprise before he grabbed it with his hand and pulled it out of the hyena tamer's grip.

"Poorly executed, crude aim, pathetic in general," Cahin commented maneuvering the whip until he held it in his arm. He cracked it once and instantly Annalise found herself stepping back, the sound had been so loud she feared for whatever came into contact with it. "Micah, you of all people should know how to use it properly," the other man commented tilting his head in amusement at the hyena tamer's obvious fury.

Annalise stared at his bright outfit, a combination of blue and green stripes with brown boots and gloves. The smiling mask that had been placed on his face drew her in, she wanted to know more about the man and she had barely come into contact with him.

"Angelo wants me to take her from you, I trust you will not deny him," Cahin informed the other man as Micah shook his head after a brief moment. Annalise could hear his teeth gritting in anger, she was amazed that he hadn't jumped the harlequin that balanced himself on the elephant.

"You may leave, I have no use for you," the harlequin commented dully as he looked at Micah, the other man merely cursed and turned sharply heading towards the entrance of the tarp, his chest heaving with rage upon being ordered around by a clown.

"Luna, up," Micah ordered before leaving as the pachyderm rose onto its two hind legs causing Cahin to lose his balance. Annalise winced expecting him to come crashing down but found herself amazed at the man's apparent gymnastic skills. He caught himself and back flipped from the elephant before landing in a graceful crouch in front of Annalise.

"Pleasure to finally meet you, _mademoiselle_," Cahin told her bowing before Annalise giggled at the man. She couldn't shake the feeling off that she had already seen him somewhere, perhaps during one of the shows?

"Have we met?" Annalise asked before she could stop herself as the harlequin before her paused. He nodded after a moment and proceeded to explain himself.

"I believe I was the one who set the tigers loose in the last city we were visiting, the poor things were so hungry and I couldn't stand by and let them starve when so many fat cats were sitting in front of me," he confessed as she found herself smiling. She recalled seeing someone dressed like him out of the corner of her eye that day as they tried to round up the cats. They had even had to pry some of them off of the aristocrats that had found themselves beneath the large cats.

She liked him already.

"So you're the one that made me go through all that trouble that day," she laughed despite the fact that she had been outraged then. She had to give it to him; he had an odd sense of humor.

"_Oui, _but that is not why I am here," he told her dropping the playful tone in his voice. Annalise stared at him in slight confusion, now that she really thought of it she couldn't fathom why he was there in the first place.

"Our boss, Angelo, has recently lost some of his most trusted men, he needs more who are willing to pledge their loyalty to him," Cahin explained as Annalise furrowed her brow, she didn't like the idea of pledging anything to anyone.

"What does he want with me?" Annalise asked curiously as Cahin motioned for her to follow. She thought about it for a moment before she realized she had been walking behind him. He led her into another tarp, much smaller than the one before. She saw an outfit placed on the table before her, it matched his, the green and blue stripes, however, had been replaced with crimson and black for her.

"Angelo would like to have you join us, we need more women, preferably young…pups if you will," Cahin explained as Annalise refused to tear her eyes away from the pieces of clothing before her. She noticed there were black gloves resting inches away from her hand.

She resisted the urge to reach out and grab them; instead she closed her right hand upon realizing that she had forgotten to cover it today. The cube that had brought them back had permanently burned in an 'A' into the palm of her hand that she wished she could hide from the world.

"What do you do for him?" Annalise asked considering the offer seriously.

Cahin disappeared from her view but she could still hear his voice as he answered her.

"Anything, we are the ones who run the circus," the harlequin informed her as she nodded in understanding, "be prepared for the unexpected, we are thieves, assassins, spies, torturers, and executioners...you are only expected to remain with us for a year, nothing more, unless you choose otherwise," Cahin continued wishing to inform her of everything before she decided blindly.

Annalise pondered everything that he had just told her, she had never been any of the things he listed. That job had always been reserved for…she tried to stop herself but found it useless. The memory of the Italian surfaced once more, she realized that he had always been what Cahin had just told her.

He had been a liar; he had never cared for her like she had for him. He had never hesitated to kill those that got in his way; the thought had frightened her once. It only made her realize how blind she'd been back then. That was his life, it had always been, and it always would be.

She had thought herself special enough to change it.

She scoffed at the idea, she had been foolish…

Her head snapped up when she was Cahin place a box before her; he stopped her hand before she opened it and stared at her warningly through his mask.

"What about Monica?" she asked as the harlequin before her laughed. The deep rich sound sent a shiver down her spine, something about him was intriguing to her.

"My sister, Caha, is talking to her at this very moment," he replied as Annalise nodded. She knew Monica would jump at an opportunity to get back at the assassins and as she thought more about it she too was beginning to accept the idea.

The whole lot of them deserved death for what they had done to her and Monica; she would never forgive them for the endless nights of whipping and torture. She still had the scars to prove it and the nightmares to remember every detail.

She reached for the box once more; Cahin didn't stop her this time, before she opened it and grinned at the mask before her. A wide grin was placed on its white porcelain face; a tear ran down the side of one of the eyes.

"You are one of us now," Cahin told her as she rose the mask up to her face and examined it closely. She didn't regret her decision, within a year she would have the tools to take on the assassins that had taken her very life five years ago.

The Italian crossed her mind once more, nothing but bitterness came with the memory. He had allowed her to be executed she would return the favor and laugh at him when she ordered his execution. Better yet, she would be the one to kill him.

"Your training begins tomorrow, do not be late," Cahin warned her before leaving her with her new view on life. Her return had been an opportunity, not to make things right or appease anyone but to take revenge for being wronged.

She never thought the day would come when she felt this much hate towards someone she had loved dearly. As she stood there, however, with her mask in hand she couldn't help but have her blood seethe upon remembering her innocence five years ago.

She would make them pay, all of them.

With Monica by her side the assassins would all fall before them, wingless, just like they had been before they were hanged.

Death was something that greeted everyone, she would simply make sure that it greeted the Italian and his creed with open arms before it welcomed her.

**Review, so many of you guys just put it on alerts, the more reviews the faster I update my dears! **


	6. Diamond Dogs

**Diamond Dogs**

**A/N: Well, here it is! So many reviews! It just made me want to write this faster, so enjoy my dears!**

**Side notes to some of you guys!  
**

** Tenebris. Aquila: Once in a while I get messages from people who have just noticed I've been posting the long awaited sequel for a while XD so you're not the only one, I hope this chapter does not dissapoint!**

** Jelly. Bean. Of. Death: Ya' know what...dont talk to me, its over. XD Oh, just a reminder, lets see if you remember where this is from, its been a while : "It's taking him! Bill..!" lmfao ciao kid **

**Random Person 94: I couldnt have said it better myself lmao **

**Sassiersphinx81: Hahahah, thank you ;D **

**Magicwinter: Hope that you like this chapter as much as you've like the others! :D  
**

**VampireVampyre: I give you a cookie XD You're the only one who noticed that Caha and Cahin were the Harlequin and Hellequin, you my dear...are amazing XD **

**Jenbuscus: Well, after this chapter it will get harder to mend their spirits lmao but I know what you mean! :D **

**DanAlaya: I swear you are one of my favorite reviewers! I love you ;D And as you can see, you read my mind...how are you able to do that o.O Anyway, getting back to this, the line that you mentioned wasnt forgotten by Annalise. It's just like you said, after a few years Jamil's lie was more believable and she lost faith in Ezio. Tragic but true, I was going to mention it later on but I couldnt leave you in confusion my dear ;D And no, the Maria in this fic isnt the same from the one in the game. The one in here is just too submissive and weak, then again I would be too if I were around Altiar and that temper of his. XD You can see that after this chapter, things will be even harder to fix! So enjoy, I hope to hear from you soon XD ciao!**

Annalise walked calmly down one of the many hallways in their Venetian palace. Her intricate robes followed after their wearer as her blood red sashes danced behind her moving form. Her blond hair had been let down and bounced behind her as she picked up her pace and neared the room she had been heading towards.

It had been a year since they had been allowed to leave the circus and the abilities they had been taught had been useful for their new 'business' as she like to call it. They had established themselves in Venice and soon after contracts had begun to pile up for them. She wasn't going to start complaining; as long as she had a job to do she could keep the demons from her mind at bay.

She shook her head to clear her thoughts before opening the double doors to her partner's quarters cautiously. The hyenas that were chained to the walls picked their heads up and looked at her as she passed by them looking excitedly around for her friend.

The black columns that she passed all made her mood drop, how her partner could stand to live in such darkness dumbfounded her. The blood red curtains were all drawn shut and the long dining table was empty except for scattered papers, maps, and melted candles.

She tripped over several bones that had been tossed about for the hyenas before she reached Monica's room; she knocked once and entered after receiving a sigh from the other side.

"There you are," she stated as she walked out into the balcony that overlooked the city below. Monica had her back to Annalise as the blond woman approached her, paper in hand.

"I am not in the mood," the brunette snapped without looking at her friend, if anything the year she had spent with Caha had only hardened her more. Annalise sometimes found herself staring at the harlequin instead of her friend, she had lost the humor in her eyes.

"You will be," Annalise laughed handing her friend the paper while standing beside her. Her eyes scanned the lighted streets below with eagerness written on her features. Her expression lit up as she looked at the crowd, there was a carnival in town and everyone walked about with masks. She wanted to go down and mingle with them but she knew the act would only earn herself a frown from the woman beside her.

"An assassin?" Monica asked reading the contract over before handing it back with a flick of her wrist. Annalise took the paper back with excitement as she looked at her partner with pleading eyes. She had just met with the client that had requested the contract, she knew it had to be done tonight.

"Come on, you've been complaining we don't get to kill enough of them, now's your chance!" Annalise pointed out grabbing her friend by her shoulders and shaking her slightly. The other tensed before turning her head to look at the blond, Annalise could have sworn she saw something frightening cross her friend's eyes before it disappeared as quickly as it came.

"The contract doesn't ask for the death of an assassin, it asks for the death of a loved one and an item," Monica stated coldly as Annalise nodded her head. She had already looked past that detail.

"And you think they're just gonna hand the 'loved one and the item' over? They'll fight for them; come on it's been a while since you got out!" Annalise persisted fingering the sashes around her waist before checking the blades on her wrists.

"I will not be hired to kill some woman," Monica hissed looking away from Annalise; she had overlooked the name and everything else. Annalise's smile dropped slightly before it returned full force. She crept up behind Monica and placed her face next to her partner's.

"But I will," she murmured eagerly giving Monica one of her famous 'stupid expressions' as the brunette like to call them. Monica eyed her out of the corner of her eye, sure enough a smirk started to creep up at the edges of her lips.

"You're an idiot," Monica commented pushing Annalise away from her as the blond woman recoiled with a cackle. Monica stepped away from the balcony with a quiet laugh and headed inside once more.

"So are we going out tonight?" Annalise called after her with enthusiasm. Monica looked back at her partner and shook her head in dismay, despite the years the blond hadn't lost her spirit.

"Feed my hyenas will you? I need to get ready," the brunette called back as Annalise beamed with joy. They were finally going to get to kill someone, she didn't really care who it was, it had been too long since her blade tasted fresh blood.

She walked over to one of the maids that remained standing near the columns waiting for orders before sending her away to retrieve some pieces of meat. The young brunette came back with two pieces of crimson meat, Annalise took them from the plates in which they had been placed in with her bare hands and threw them over to the animals on the wall.

The hyenas yipped at snatched it up in an instant before Annalise heard their jaws start to break the bones with ease. She shuddered wondering what it would feel like to be eaten by one of them before Monica came back fixing her blade to her wrist in a calculative manner.

"You remind me of Caha when you do that, stop it," Annalise pointed out as Monica stopped adjusting the blade and looked up at her friend in an annoyed manner. The other merely quirked her lip up on one side which made the brunette roll her eyes in annoyance.

"And you remind me of Cahin when you do that, stop it," Monica teased before walking away. Annalise followed after her noticing how many habits the two had picked up from their mentors as they headed out of the palace with anxious looks. The night sky greeted the pair as they walked side by side.

They pulled on their masks just as they joined the masses of people as they fell into their routine. They scanned the crowds around them with discretion, the last thing they needed was to be spotted before they had a chance to get near their target.

"There," Monica pointed out tilting her head in a certain direction as Annalise turned to look as well. She was greeted with the sight of a woman standing beside an assassin. The blond cursed noticing the high ranking robes that the man was wearing; he would be a problem if they didn't get out of there fast after everything was done. The woman standing beside him, however, made her glance sideways at Monica after noticing how similar they looked to each other.

"She is the one we have to kill, the rest of the contract stated there should be another woman…we have to steal something from her," Monica murmured scanning the crowd near the pair that stood away from her completely ignoring the glances her partner was giving her.

"Found her," Annalise stated with triumph tapping her partner on the shoulder motioning over to a blond that had found her way next to the other woman and assassin. She was quickly joined by another man, however, making the pair of women watching from afar curse.

"They certainly know how to pick them, they're both high ranking assassins, it could get ugly really fast if we screw this up," Monica hissed noticing the other man and the various sashes around his waist, the robes alone showed his standing in the creed.

"I'll take care of the blond, I leave the killing to you," Annalise stated as Monica nodded. Before she knew it the blond beside her had disappeared from her side, she cursed when she noticed she was already making her way over to her objective.

Monica turned and walked rapidly into an alley where no one could see her before pulling herself up to the roof with slight difficulty; it had been a while since she had done it. Once she was standing above everyone she spotted Annalise nearing the other woman calmly, Monica cursed making her way above the pair of assassins and the women that stood between them.

She could faintly hear their conversation; she managed to pick up the names of the women. Maria and Anna, or perhaps she had heard wrong. She shook her head, it did not matter now. She didn't care who the assassins beside them were either, she didn't want to know the names of her soon to be victims.

She pulled her hand back and readied the gun that had been fixed to the side of her blade; she aimed it carefully and breathed in calmly waiting for Annalise to make the first move.

Annalise pushed her way through the crowd noticing Monica's form perched above the woman she had to kill, she was waiting for her to steal the other item from the blond before pulling the trigger. She continued to walk towards her target before she found herself staring at one of the assassins and the hidden blade he had pressed up to her side.

"I have been doing this longer than you have, what do you think you are doing?" he spat with venom apparent in his voice as he pressed the blade closer to her. She froze in fear of causing a commotion around them as the other assassin turned to look at her with haste. The pair of women that had been with them huddled behind the other assassin in fear, Annalise shook her head at their stupidity before looking up.

The blond nodded her head slightly at her partner as Monica pulled back on the trigger and fired. The assassin that held the blade to her cursed upon witnessing this and turned to look at his partner in alarm. Much to his relief the pair of women remained unharmed; the other assassin had put his arm between the woman's head and the bullet.

Annalise cursed upon seeing the other assassin act with such speed. She kicked the assassin in front of her noticing his distracted stance as he doubled over in pain. She bolted away and ran through the crowd as they cleared the way for her in fear; she looked back and saw the assassin recovering from her blow before heading after her.

She noticed the other had begun to climb the building in order to reach Monica, she turned and continued to run, the last thing she wanted to do was fight with an assassin in a street filled with people.

Monica on the other hand braced herself once she noticed the assassin pull himself up with rage apparent in his stance. His chest heaved as the pair circled each other, Monica noticed the deadly grip he held on the small blade in his hand.

"You're one of them, a Diamond Dog," the assassin growled noticing the mask on the woman, sure enough three diamonds in the shapes of tears decorated the right cheek on the mask. Monica nodded knowing her creed had become known over the past year. They had been named Diamond Dogs due to the way in which they haunted their targets, always in a pack. The diamonds on their masks had also been part of their trademark.

Before she knew it he lunged at her swinging his hand back and bringing it down on her seconds before she managed to step out of the way. She could feel the air dance around them as she retaliated with a kick to his back. He stumbled forward before snarling and lunging at her once more.

A swing from his knife caught her arm as she winced and held the torn material with one hand noticing the blood that had started to seep through. She panted heavily as they both circled each other once more.

She had to give it to the assassin, he knew how to fight.

Her dagger cut through the air seconds before she managed to nick his cheek slightly, he pulled back with fury upon feeling the cut and threw several knives at her form. She back flipped several times managing to dodge them before stopping and looking around for the assassin. She cursed when she noticed he was behind her, his grip tightened around one of her arms as he twisted her around and kneed her in the stomach.

Monica doubled over in pain and coughed trying to get some air into her lungs before he straightened her up once more. She stood shakily before him seconds before he back handed her with such force that the mask on her face cracked and fell off with the impact.

She snarled at the act before dropping a smoke bomb in between the two, the assassin stepped back in confusion as she turned and raced off of the roof. The assassin managed to catch the brief sight of her black hair falling from its bindings as she ran away from him. He stood frozen in his spot as he watched the woman swan dive off of the roof, he breathed in sharply as a memory assaulted his mind from years ago.

Could she be…?

He ran over to the edge of the building and looked down to see the face of the assassin that had tried to kill him but found nothing but the ripples in the water. He noticed the shattered mask beneath him; he crouched and picked up the pieces before storing them away in one of the pockets in his robe for later examination. He felt pain shoot up his arm before remembering the bullet that was still imbedded in his arm.

He grimaced before descending the roof by letting his body drop down and land in a painful crouch. Instantly the pair of women rushed over to him with concerned looks on their expressions. He slapped their hands away before cradling his arm and looking out into the crowded streets once more.

"Altair, you need to get that bullet out," Maria scolded him looking at the crimson staining his white robes with horrified eyes.

"I know what I need to do, woman," Altair snapped back walking away from the pair of women as Maria bowed her head in an apologizing manner. She didn't want to appear ungrateful; after all he had blocked the bullet from hitting her.

"We need to find Ezio," Altair stated coldly, the woman had certainly known how to counter his every move, the Italian would no doubt find himself in the same predicament.

"But your arm-" Maria started once more before the grand master turned to look at her with a cold look.

"We are looking for Ezio, that is final," he ordered walking into the streets covering his bloodied sleeve with his other arm. His expression was calm his mind, however, was in turmoil at the events that had happened. That woman on the roof, her black hair…it couldn't be. He reprimanded himself for even thinking about _her. _

Instead he concentrated on finding the Italian, although the task was more difficult than he first thought given the crowded streets surrounding them.

Altair sighed; he wondered how he managed to get himself into these situations. He shook his head before resuming his walk, sooner or later he was bound to run into the loud Italian.

OoOoOoOoOoOoO

"You hit like a girl!" the assassin before her teased as Annalise seethed at the comment. She had just landed a punch to the other's face and he was making fun of her? He hadn't managed to so much as scratch her.

"I am a girl, _idiota!"_ she snapped at him lunging forward once more with her blade in hand. The assassin before her sidestepped out of her way just in time as she swung into the air. She gritted her teeth as her body whirled around to face him.

"A Diamond Dog that knows Italian? What next, you will actually kill me?" the man before her laughed as she growled and swung her dagger at him once more. He started to step out of the way once more before she threw the blade into her other hand and spun around with such speed that she managed to imbed it into his shoulder.

The assassin before her cursed loudly in Italian as he held the dagger in his hand and tried to pull it out. He left the blade in and instead stalked over to her as Annalise looked around for another weapon. She remembered the blade on her wrist and managed to slide it out just as the assassin reached her.

His own blade danced through the air and shredded her clothes slicing her leg as she hissed in pain and backed away from him out of instinct. He went after her again as she remembered her training and braced herself as he walked over to her ready to kill her for injuring him. Much to his surprise she ran up to him and used his shoulders as support as her body jumped over his own. He followed her with his eyes resisting the urge to drop his jaw, that was something he had never seen before.

He shook the shock off and stormed over to her before she tried to get away from him again. His hand shot out and managed to catch her neck as he slammed her up against a nearby wall. He heard her gasp as her mask fell off; he followed the porcelain prop as it shattered on the ground. His brown eyes trailed up slowly as he noticed blond hair cascading down over her chest.

Before her could see her face, however, Annalise head butted him and dropped a smoke bomb in between their bodies. He stepped back and rose his arm to cover his stinging nose and eyes as she used the temporary distraction to run away from him and dive into the water a few feet away from them.

The assassin had gotten close to seeing her, that was something that had been strictly prohibited in her creed; no one was allowed to see their faces. She managed to swim away without any further incidents and started to leave unaware of the assassin and the turmoil in which she had left him.

Ezio stared after her form as her blond hair danced in the wind after her lithe body, he couldn't believe his eyes. He hadn't seen that shade of yellow since…he was snapped out of his thoughts as a hesitant hand was placed on his shoulder.

He winced when a scream reached his sensitive ears, Anna stared at the crimson that stained her palm with horror and then at Ezio.

"Do not do that again," Ezio snarled rubbing his hear with the palm of his hand in agitation. Anna stared at him in concern before looking over his shoulder, nothing but water greeted her.

"She got away?" Altair asked already knowing the answer as Ezio nodded. Both of the assassins exchanged glances, they both had the same question in their minds. They weren't sure if they wanted the answer for it.

"Come, both of you need a doctor," Maria pleaded leading Altair away as the grandmaster allowed himself to be pulled by the smaller woman before him.

Ezio followed after the pair wondering the same thing as the grandmaster, he pulled his hood down lower knowing he couldn't be recognized anyway. The shadows hid their faces from view, just like the masks had done for the pair of women that had tried to kill them moments ago.

The Italian tripped over Anna who had gotten in his way as he shook his head and tried to concentrate on the task at hand despite his burning shoulder. Up ahead he could see Altair staggering beside Maria, his arm hung to the side dripping with blood, it was only then that the Italian noticed how beat up they had been.

When they reached the doctor Altair sat beside him sliding down the stone wall with an uncharacteristic tired sigh making Ezio glance at him in concern.

"I want them dead," Altair stated holding his bleeding arm as the doctor poked and prodded at it making the assassin grimace in pain. The Italian's jaw dropped open upon hearing the Arab next to him.

"But what if it was-" Ezio started, hopeful.

"It was not them," Altair cut him off coldly. They had hoped for the pair of women to return for far too long, the chances of them reappearing after so long were impossible. The women that had nearly killed them had merely reminded them of the pair they had known long ago, that was all. "I want their location by tomorrow," Altair stated as Ezio nodded sorrowfully beside him.

The Italian scolded himself for having his hopes so high, Altair was right. It couldn't have been the women they once knew. He hissed when the doctor moved on to look at his shoulder and he instantly understood Altair's resentment and fury towards the women that had done this to him.

"We'll have their heads for this, _amico mio_."

**Shocker wasnt it? Lmao, review my dears, because in a sense...they havent been reunited properly...it'll happen in the next chapter do no fret ;D**


	7. Remember

**Remember **

**A/N: So many reviews! O.o It makes me happy and update faster so keep it up my dears! Side notes even though I cant do the ones that are marked as 'Guest' it would be too confusing XD: **

**Anon: Dont worry, their reunion is coming up soon!**

**XxKiwahxX: Dont worry, here's a new chappie so you don't have to re-read the old ones ;D**

**Jelly. bean. of. death.: Dude...I was watching The Road to El Dorado the other day and I thought of you XD "Tulio and Miguel! Miguel and Tulio! Mighty and powerful gods!" lmfao hope you like the chapter kid, cuz I sure as well wont be redoing it lmao. **

**Random Person 94: Your review made me laugh XD You're right though, it is gonna go down!**

**Tenebris. Aquila: Ya know, you're the first one to say that they didnt like Maria and Anna...not that I like em either -_- Im glad that I kept you in suspense throughout the whole thing as for Monica not wanting to do the killing, she just didnt want to be hired to kill a woman, assassins are their specialty after all! XD Anyway, I hope you enjoy this one as well my dear :D **

**VampireVampyre: Well, their identities won't be in the dark for long, I'm afraid. XD **

**Altairluvr120: Shame about your bookstore, I would have camped out and protested against it! :D Anyway! Im glad Im your "bookstore" ;D Enjoy!**

**DanAlaya: Ah, it's always good to hear from you my dear :D You have me wondering why Monica is starting to scare you so, although after this chapter you might get even more freaked out by her XD As for who put out the contract...it's a secret ;) And as you will probably read, the moment when they meet wont be pretty or covered in flowers XD And you have me feeling guilty for making you late to work! Let me know if you liked the chappie! **

**Jenbuscus: Im glad you liked my stories XD And I tried to update as soon as I could for all of you guys, so let me know if you liked the update my dear!**

"Get out of my way, perra!" Monica barked as the maids around her backed away and stared grimly at their employer. The brunette stormed by with one bloodied hand covering her bottom lip trying to stop the bleeding from the cut the mask had left behind.

Annalise stared after her in worry and then at the trail of blood that had been left behind on the white floors. She followed after her friend with concern apparent in her eyes; no one was safe when Monica was raging.

"Monica, calm down," Annalise called after the brunette as the other stopped abruptly and turned sharply to look at her. Her blazing eyes clashed with Annalise's calm orbs, the air around them grew tense as the maids stared nervously at the pair.

"Do not tell me to calm down," Monica barked dropping her hand from her lip as Annalise grimaced at the wound. The blood that dripped down from the brunette's arm only made the small drops at her feet grow into a puddle.

Annalise stared down at her own wounds and noticed the difference, the assassin that her partner had run into had been aiming to kill the whole time. The one she had fought with had merely wanted to mess with her, the cut on her leg proved her idea true. He could have killed her when he rammed her up against the wall.

"You're bleeding all over the place, let a doctor look at that, I'll bring one in," the blond demanded stepping forward as Monica stepped back defensively. Her bloodied hand rose once more to cover her lip, the deep gash burned as she hissed in pain and stepped back again.

"No," she replied firmly through clenched teeth. Annalise cringed when she saw her partner's bloodied teeth, the brunette turned away once more and headed towards her quarters as Annalise shook her head and stared after her form.

She could hear her partner curse foully in Spanish as shattering noises reached her ears, she sighed in disapproval. No doubt she was taking her rage out on anything she could get her hands on. The cackles that came from the hyenas startled her as she too cursed noticing she had set them loose. Annalise managed to run up the wall and jump off of it while grabbing the chandelier above her as the pair of spotted wild dogs raced past her nipping at her feet.

"Monica!" Annalise yelled in outrage noticing the hyenas corner a couple of maids and jump on them. She tried to call off the pair of dogs but failed as they sunk their teeth into the women that had been trying to get away, screams filled the palace as the hyenas started to feast on their meal.

Annalise made a disgusted look at them before turning away from the sight, she held on to the chandelier for fear of dropping down and having the dogs turn on her. She pulled her body up and balanced on it before jumping to the next one well aware of the wild dogs below her that kept a close eye on her.

The door to her partner's quarters had been left wide open much to her relief as she jumped down and sprinted towards them hearing the nails of the hyenas' paws click against the floor beneath her. She didn't dare look back; her mind knew they were after her.

She dove through the double doors and scampered up to her feet before hurling her body at the doors and slamming them shut. The bodies of the wild dogs collided against the wood as she pressed her body up against it while sighing in relief. She had managed to get out of that predicament alive, the maids that were outside, however, hadn't been that lucky.

"What the hell is wrong with you, you just got two maids killed!" Annalise yelled storming up to her partner who stood completely still, her head down giving no indication that she had heard or cared.

"I do not care," Monica's voice replied as Annalise's own temper started to rise. She hadn't expected her partner to be so indifferent about another human being's life.

"What is wrong with you?" the blond spat in disgust as the shoulders of the woman in front of her started to shake uncontrollably with laughter. Monica rose her head to look at her friend, the bloodied smile on her face proved how little she was affected by the death of the pair of women.

"We both know…there's plenty wrong with me," Monica replied seriously before Annalise's fist collided with her face. The brunette's head snapped to the side with the force of the hit before she spit out more blood, the smile on her face still in place.

"You're despicable," Annalise growled shaking the brunette in her hold. The small laugh that escaped from her only fueled her rage as she pulled back and delivered another blow to the side of her face. Monica groaned before turning her head towards her friend, the smile dropping slightly before it was back. The blood that oozed down from her broken nose and split lip didn't seem to faze the blond in front of her, at the moment all she cared about was avenging the pair of maids outside.

"Oh, I knew that by now…" the brunette replied choking on her blood as Annalise struggled with herself, the beat up state that her lifelong friend was in caused her to feel regret for hitting her and worsening the wounds. "Surely you can tell me something new," the blond heard her friend whisper before her anger returned upon hearing the scratching and yipping from the hyenas at the doors.

"You idiot," Annalise snarled delivering one more blow as the brunette let out a cackle at the pain. The coppery taste of the blood in her mouth was the only thing she registered now; her body had gone numb already.

The blond let her partner go in horror once she saw her spit out more blood; she wasn't helping by beating her up for something that had already passed. She sighed and tried to calm herself before shaking her head at the woman in front of her.

"Come on, I have to get you cleaned up," Annalise murmured with regret as she wrapped an arm around her and helped her walk over to her large bedroom. She found Monica's body weigh her down as the other woman lost consciousness. Annalise sighed before swinging the brunette over her shoulder and kicking the door to her room open.

She set her down onto the bed and moved over to the bathroom to retrieve the supplies that she would need. A relieved sigh escaped her lips when she examined her partner's split lip, it would leave a barely noticeable scar on her bottom lip if it healed properly. The cut on her arm, however, required stitching. She pulled out a needle and started to close the wound up after cleaning it, the faster she did it the better.

Annalise pulled back when she was done and stared at her friend with dismay and regret written all over her features, she would have to apologize later on no matter how much she detested the idea. She turned sharply and headed towards the doors before remembering the pair of dogs waiting outside. Her lip curled upward into a sneer before her eyes looked around for something to use as a distraction.

She couldn't kill the spotted wild dogs, she knew that much. Monica would surely get back at her by purchasing two pairs of them instead of one. A red gleam caught her eye as she turned to look at two pieces of meat that rested on the table amongst the shattered glass and spilled wine. She picked them up and walked over to the door before opening it allowing the animals in.

They bounded into the room before their ears twirled around upon hearing Annalise whistling at them. Their heads snapped over to the pieces of meat that she dangled in front of them as she dropped them near the wall where their chains were hooked into.

The laughing pair of hyenas approached the meat and stuffed their muzzles into it as Annalise reached out carefully and managed to secure their chains to the collars around their necks. She stepped back just in time as one of the dogs snapped at her viciously before going back to its piece of meat.

Annalise turned away not really understanding Monica's reason for keeping the dangerous animals around her, she closed the door behind her before heading down the hall towards her room. She entered and collapsed on her bed, she had already taken care of the cut on her leg when she had patched Monica up.

Upon realizing that she allowed herself to drift off into a restless sleep, the surviving maids would no doubt clean up after the pair of dogs and the bloodied mess that they had made out in the hall. Sleep took her into is embrace as she slept for two days straight.

She passed another day uneventfully; the maids had cleaned up after the hyenas and kept their distance from Monica's room despite the fact that the brunette kept the door closed. Monica didn't even leave the room, Annalise decided to follow her lead and remain in her quarters as well. After the events that had passed she needed to relax and ease her muscles before she went out again for blood.

It wasn't until she was getting ready to go to sleep once more that she felt a blade slide over her neck carefully, the cold metal pressed against her skin making her freeze. She closed her eyes, the bastards hadn't even waited for a week to pass before they came for them, she should have seen it coming and attacked first.

"Do not think of struggling," the assassin's voice whispered into her ear. Her keen hearing managed to distinguish the tone of the voice; it wasn't the same man that she had run into last time. This one sounded younger and in their world it meant less experienced.

"Boy, you must have gone mad, a Dog does not go down without a fight," she snarled back twirling around upon feeling the grip he held on the knife lessen at her response. She elbowed him in the face as he stepped back in pain, she took the blade from his hand and swung at him before another assassin blocked the blow and stood in front of the other man.

She cursed as she looked around; she knew they wouldn't come unprepared. She managed to take two of them down by slicing their throats before they overpowered her and dragged her out of her room. Her body squirmed and struggled as her legs kicked wildly, she wasn't going to make it easy on them. Annalise turned to look at her partner's door upon hearing a commotion coming from inside as well.

The double doors swung open to reveal one assassin on the ground being eaten by the hyenas which had been set loose once more. Annalise silently thanked the animal for taking care of the assassin in painful manner, she could hear his bones breaking in the jaw of the dog on top of him.

Her eyes widened, however, when another man stood behind the spotted dog and cracked its neck in one swift move. The assassin turned and stabbed his sword into the remaining hyena as it lunged at him before cleaning his blade with apparent disgust.

"You're dead! Pray that by the time you're through with me I'm no longer standing because if I am…I'll tear the skin from your bodies and use your blood to paint my walls!" Monica yelled at them as tears of rage fell from her eyes upon seeing the dead bodies of her pets. She too kicked with all of her might as they started to drag the pair out of the palace.

"Wait until the rest of the Dogs find out about this, you'll be dead before you know what hit you!" Annalise barked struggling against the assassins that restrained her.

"Silence them, I cannot afford to have them blow our cover," the assassin at the head of the pack ordered as the others nodded. The pair of women looked at each other before struggling once more; they weren't going to be taken without a struggle.

"Karim, we can kill them now and spare ourselves the trouble of bringing them back to the creed," the assassin holding Monica commented as she whipped around in outrage.

"I'll show you trouble," she barked before sinking her teeth into his arm making him yelp in pain and release her. Annalise used the temporary distraction as an opportunity to kick back at the assassin behind her as she too was released from her captor.

Before they knew what had happened, however, Karim stepped in between the two and used the hilt of his sword to hit the back of their heads. Both of the women fell forward face first into the dirt ground.

"That is why I told you to watch yourselves," Karim snapped looking at the pair of assassins that had been holding the women. They stared back at him with apparent shame in their expressions before looking down unable to hold his gaze.

"Carry them, we are expected to bring them in for questioning tonight," Karim snapped as the assassins jumped at a chance for redemption. They picked the women up and swung them over their shoulders before walking after Karim and the remaining assassins.

They walked through the empty streets of Venice for a while before they reached their destination. The group walked through the large gates of the entrance before noticing the women were starting to come to.

"Good, they need to be awake for what is to come," Karim commented motioning for the pair of assassins to follow him. His quiet footsteps were the only thing that could be heard as he led them down a darkened hallway before descending to the lower levels of the creed.

The torches hanging on the walls were the only thing that prevented the assassins from falling down the stairs that greeted them eerily. They knew where they were the moment they stepped into the damp cells that they kept for interrogation.

"Where are we?" Monica asked regaining consciousness before looking around in a confused manner. Her breath hitched when her eyes landed on the metal bars of the empty cells, she could feel the memories rushing back.

She was let down from the assassin's shoulder and held in place as she looked around cautiously.

She started to squirm when she noticed her hands had been tied behind her back, she could recognize a torture chamber when she saw one. It was happening all over again, it was exactly like the last time they had been taken in by the assassins, she didn't want to relive it.

"No…not this," Annalise whispered in fear as she kicked harshly trying to get away. The moment she had regained consciousness she had been assaulted with the smell of damp dirt, she could never forget it, nor could she forget all of the sessions that they had endured at the hands of the torturer in Masyaf.

"Which assassin do you want to deliver the blows?" another assassin asked looking at Karim as he pondered the question thoroughly.

"Judas," Karim replied knowing the reputation that the Spaniard had with whips. As soon as the name left his lips another assassin appeared beside the one that had asked him the question, his dark robes blended in with the dimly lit chambers in which they found themselves in.

"I love a good flogging at night," he laughed, his deep gravelly voice sending a shiver down Annalise's back as she turned her head to look at Monica who was staring at the man with amusement in her eyes. The blond couldn't comprehend what was humorous about the situation in which they were in; the last thing on her mind would have been to laugh.

"Do not hold back, that is an order," Karim warned the man as Judas' eyes snapped up to look at him.

"There is a possibility that they will bleed to death if I follow that request," Judas replied seriously. The last person that had landed in his grasp had been dragged out dead before they could even interrogate him.

"It is an order," Karim told him sternly before turning to leave without even glancing at the women that they had been ordered to retrieve. He didn't want to see their faces, his robes brushed against them as he ascended the stairs swiftly.

"Oh, this is going to be fun," Monica murmured catching Judas' attention as his grey eyes burned holes into her.

"Alright, you're first," he snapped reaching out to grab her as Annalise stared at her partner with horror written all over her features. It was all happening again, they were going to get tortured, she had a feeling she would have nightmares of this all over again. That was if she lived through it.

"I can hardly wait; do I get the flagrum like last time?" Monica snorted with a sneer on her face as the man turned his head to look at her before tilting it slightly amazed at her comment.

"I would hate to disappoint you," Judas replied picking up the whip and dangling it in front of her. The jingling that came from the curved pieces of metal at the ends of the leather strings haunted Annalise as she stepped back slightly in fear. Monica's eyes landed on the familiar whip with regret, she remembered how it felt to be struck with it all too well.

He grabbed her harshly and hurled her over towards the end of the hall as she tripped and regained her balance moments later. She kept her head low as she was led into the chamber, the post where her hands would be tied to greeted her as she turned her head away from the bloodied wood.

Her hands were secured above her head before she heard the Spaniard walk away from her and pick up the whip once more. His footsteps neared her once more as his blade was unsheathed and used to cut open the robes that she wore. Her exposed back felt the gush of cold air around her as she lowered her head and tried to calm herself.

"Been here before, I see," Judas commented tracing the scars on her back with his knife, he smiled as he noticed the shape that they made. She looked like a fallen angel who had gotten her wings cut off, no matter, he would make sure that it remained like that.

"You have no idea," Monica whispered back as she heard him step back, the jingling of the whip reached her ears once more before she felt the air around her dance seconds before the agonizing blow reached her skin.

She couldn't hold back the scream that escaped from her lips; she clenched her hands and squirmed against the post before another blow reached her back.

Annalise could hear the screams that tore through the walls around her, each caused the hair on the back of her neck to stand up. She prayed for him to stop, hours went by before the cries ceased and he emerged from the room dragging Monica our by the back of her neck.

He tossed the woman into an empty cell carelessly as her body skid on the ground revealing the torn and lacerated skin on her back. Annalise stared at her partner in horror before she realized that she was still breathing, barely but she was still alive. Her bloodied back looked gruesome; she couldn't stop the flashbacks from coming back to her.

"Come, I hope you'll prove more entertaining," Judas commented as the assassin that had been holding her shoved her over to the waiting torturer. She felt his iron grip wrap around her neck before he started to lead her into the same room.

Her breathing came in short bursts; the rope around her wrists was cut before he secured her to the post that she would be facing during the session. She grimaced when she saw the nail marks that Monica had left behind, this was all looking familiar to her.

Judas cut through her robes as well before realizing that both of the women had been whipped before, something about that didn't sit well with him. The skin which he was flogging was extremely sensitive; the feeling increased thousand fold when it was scarred over.

Annalise got not warning before she felt the whip on her skin. She cried out in pain as the curves in the metal dug into her skin and pulled monstrously. She lost count of the lashings after the twentieth one; her throat was raw after having screamed for hours.

She felt her body slump forwards and use the pole as support, her eyes were closed tightly, she was afraid of opening them and looking at the blood that had puddled at her feet. Before she knew it her legs gave out after another swing which made Judas frown.

"You were both a disappointment," he commented setting the whip aside knowing she had passed out. There was no point in continuing the session when she no longer registered any pain. He walked over and cut her off from the pole before dragging her into another cell.

He threw her in without a second glance as she too landed harshly irritating her raw wounds which still bled profusely. He didn't understand what they had done to deserve such punishment; he shrugged the thought off as he peeled off his bloodied gloves and tossed them aside.

He didn't question his orders, he merely carried them out.

Judas turned to look at the pair of women on the cold ground before looking away; he had to admit he felt a pang of guilt upon having his mind remind him that he had just lashed them over their old scars. Something like that would not stop bleeding unless it was taken care of.

"Get a doctor down here, I don't want the Grandmaster to complain when he arrives and realizes that they are both dead," Judas ordered as the assassin that had been standing near the door nodded and turned to go and fetch a medic.

Judas shook his head in regret before he too walked up the stairs solemnly before opening the door that led to the courtyard. He walked through the halls noticing the nervous glances that the assassins gave him before he reached the fountain in the center and washed the blood off of his hands and face.

Karim watched from the shadows knowing that the Grandmaster's orders had been carried out like he had specified. He turned and headed towards his room to rest, his muscles were killing him.

The moment his head hit the pillow he drifted off into sleep although it was short lived. A pair of shaking hands on his shoulders woke him up as he cracked open one eye to look at the assassin that was struggling to wake him.

"What is it Hadar?" his voice asked slurring the words slightly still half asleep.

"They just arrived," Hadar replied as Karim shot out of the bed and rushed over to the courtyard once more. He was greeted with the sight of an irritated Altair and an annoyed Ezio. The pair stood under the cover of the moonlight looking tense and weary.

"I trust that you want to keep your head resting on your shoulders, Karim," Altair snarled looking like he had spent several days without rest, "did you find them?"

"They're downstairs, Master," Karim replied catching Ezio's attention. He flinched inwardly when he realized what the word 'downstairs' actually meant.

"Judas?" Ezio asked as Karim nodded. The Italian resisted the urge to sigh, out of all of the people he could have picked to torture a pair of women he had chosen the worst. Judas was brutal when it came to flogging, a single flick of his wrist could strip flesh from bone.

He had to admit that he didn't feel remorse for them; they deserved whatever they had gotten. His shoulder ached immensely every time he moved and Altair had been ordered to rest until the bullet wound in his arm completely healed.

"For your sake they better be alive," Altair added warningly as Karim avoided meeting the golden orbs that stared at him dangerously.

He nodded nervously as Ezio shook his head slightly knowing that the women that had tried to kill them wouldn't be in any condition to talk. He was brought back down to earth when he heard Altair's voice speak once more.

"Good, if anyone is going to kill them… it is going to be me."

**Review!**


	8. Not Again

**Not Again.**

**A/N: Enjoy!**

**Lil' Stranger14: He went a little crazy XD**

**miruka67 : Wait no more! Here's the new chapter :D**

**Jelly. Bean. Of. Death. :Child I didnt catch that when I read it over -_- so thank you XD As for the commas, add to many and you're left with run-on sentences, trust me they are not pleasant lmao anyway ciao kid!**

**Fira Jones: "Shut up reason!" lmao that made me laugh so hard, sadly it is realistic and things just get uglier from here on out. **

**Tenebris. Aquila: Well, it is the same Karim and Hadar, you're the first to notice! XD and I leave unsigned reviews accidentaly all the time, I feel like an idiot when I do so dont worry -_- Enjoy! **

**selen: Well, it answers where Stiglitz went XD**

**XxKiwahxX:Well its not a double chapter but I hope it won't disappoint! **

**Altairluvr120 : Why thank you! :D**

**DanAlaya: Have I mentioned you're one of my favorite reviewers? I think not XD You're one of the few that notice the little things and I love it :3 You're right about the Diamond Dogs, they're quite nasty and easy to hate and natural enemies with the assassins. As for the pair or girls, I'll agree that they have both fallen quite far, I too wonder if I can ever redeem them XD You hit the mark with describing Monica and for that you deserve a cookie ;D As for Altair and Ezio, a little of the confusion and doubt starts to kick in later on in the chapter, so enjoy my dear! **

**Jenbuscus : Well it's not a double chapter, sorry. I couldnt write two chapters without burning out my brain XD I hope you like it though, let me know what you though! **

Ezio walked behind Altair as the grandmaster made his way towards the door that led to the lower levels. Much to his surprise Stiglitz raced by brushing up against Altair's leg before slipping in through the opened door.

The Italian tilted his head at the cat; the feline never went down into the holding cells. He shook the thought off as he started to descend the stairs after Altair; the cat's loud meowing that came from below startled the pair of men.

Altair actually stopped and turned back to look at him with a confused expression on his usually stoic face.

A voice broke them away from their individual thoughts; the soft and controlled tone reached their ears making both of them pale. Ezio placed a hand on Altair's shoulder once he saw the older assassin sway dangerously in his spot.

"It can't be…" he whispered back at Ezio as the Italian resisted the urge to rush down as well and see if his suspicions were true. That would cause a scene; he couldn't afford to drop the control he had over a woman.

"When will you see reason? Stop doing that!" a woman scolded as a chilling laugh reached their ears in response. The sound echoed around the walls reaching Altair making him step back in horror, his mouth parted in shock as he tried to steady his breathing.

"Because I never had any damn reason!" another voice joined in snarling the response viciously.

Stiglitz meowed once more as Ezio closed his eyes and leaned his body up against the wall. He hadn't slept in days that had to be the reason behind all of it. The familiar voices were merely products of his mind playing tricks on him.

"Stiglitz be quiet," the same woman from before snapped as the cat ceased its meowing. Altair's mouth resisted the urge to drop open in shock, no one had been able to silence the cat but him.

"Stop doing that, you'll make it worse, didn't I just warn you about it?" the other commented as Ezio shook his head and sat back onto the stairs. Altair remained standing using the wall for support as they continued to listen into the conversation of the two women.

"The pain comforts me, it lets me know I'm still alive," the one from before hissed back as Stiglitz raced up the stairs before stopping at Altair's feet. The pair of assassins looked down at the cat before the Arab took it into his arms. He pulled back with a grimace upon feeling the damp fur in his hand.

He rose his gloved hand up into the light from the torch behind him and found crimson staining the expensive black leather. He examined the feline intently and sighed when he realized it hadn't come from the cat.

He set it down and started to descend the stairs once more wanting to put his mind at ease as Ezio followed after him with a doubtful look in his eyes.

The sight that greeted them when they finally reached the cells, however, made both of them lose their composure for a brief second. Altair dismissed the guard with a wave of his hand as he stared at the pair of women in the cells.

"_Why so silent, good messieurs?" _Monica sang mockingly looking over her shoulder at the two assassins that stood before them. Altair couldn't tear his eyes away from her torn back as it rested up against the bars, so that was what the other had meant when she had been scolding her.

Annalise smiled despite the pain that she was in once she heard her partner's singing, it had been years since she had sang. She couldn't have picked more fitting lyrics for their current situation, Monica was right; the pair of assassins were just standing there silently.

"Cat got their tongues?" Annalise commented with amusement as Monica laughed once more. Altair felt himself slowly lose the calm look he had walked in with. Ezio couldn't look away from Annalise's form. She was alive…but how?

"You do not remember me?" Altair asked in disbelief upon finding Monica like this, what was she doing in the holding cells? Better yet, why was she alive?

Monica's laughter ceased as she heard the deep voice that came from the assassin. Annalise's mouth dropped open in horror as she too recognized the familiar tone. Monica's body turned to look at his form standing a few feet away from her with blazing eyes.

All of the rage and resentment that she had been holding in for the past six years came out when she replied.

"Could I ever forget the man that executed me?" she snarled spitting at his feet as Ezio's own mouth dropped open in shock. Before he knew it, however, Altair had reached in between the bars and gripped Monica's throat with fury. No one had ever spat at him, he wouldn't stand such an insult not even if it was her.

Annalise stared at the Arab she knew too well, she watched with fear as her partner's feet left the ground as the assassin rose her up into a two feet death grip. Monica choked and coughed desperately as she felt her wind pipe being constricted by the assassin she had once known.

"Do something!" Annalise yelled at the remaining assassin who stood frozen in front of her cell. She could see Monica kicking the bars desperately as her lungs screamed out for air, Altair refused to ease the pressure.

"You are supposed to be dead," the man beside her mumbled in disbelief as Annalise turned to look at him recognizing his voice in an instant. She hadn't forgotten him, she still had a score to settle with him, but at the moment she couldn't do anything with bars in between them.

"If you kill her you'll have the Diamond Dogs slaughtering every assassin that they cross paths with!" Annalise yelled in an act of desperation. Altair refused to listen, he sneered and increased the pressure even more, Monica couldn't even breathe anymore. Her eyes started to cloud over as Ezio stared at Altair in disbelief; he was going to kill her.

"Ezio, do something!" Annalise begged hating herself for asking a favor from the man she had grown to hate over the years.

"Insolent Dog, how dare you spit at me!" Altair snarled shaking the woman in his hold as she clawed at his wrist desperately feeling her life slipping away.

Ezio was about to move forward and pull him away before he noticed Stiglitz hiss at Altair and attach himself to the assassin's leg. The feline bit the assassin desperately making the Arab sneer in pain before releasing Monica who dropped down coughing and gasping for air.

Annalise stared at the pair of men before her in shock, they too had changed over time. She watched as Altair reached down for the cat seconds before it dug its claws out of him and slipped out of his grasp through the bars into Monica's cell.

She held the black oriental cat in her arms gratefully before looking up at Altair with clear loathing in her eyes. Her red neck made the grandmaster turn away without another word, if he didn't get out he would kill her the second time around.

"Altair-" Ezio called after him before the Arab turned sharply and silenced him with a piercing look.

"They are Diamond Dogs, boy," Altair hissed grabbing Ezio by his collar as the young Italian froze in horror at the man before him. It wasn't the usual Altair that he was around all day with, no, this was his darker side. "Do not forget that," he added releasing him before heading up the stairs once more.

Annalise stared at him with accusing eyes as she turned away with a disgusted look on her expression.

"How did you get back?" Ezio asked as Annalise turned her head slightly to look at him before sneering.

"You should know, it left a scar on our hands after all," she replied bitterly making Ezio turn away from her as well. This hadn't been how he wanted to see the pair of women again; he hadn't expected them to turn on the creed to such a degree. They had created a creed of their own with a single purpose: kill assassins.

He headed up the stairs realizing that the box Leonardo had created had worked; he would have to inform the inventor of his success. Ezio found himself wondering if they should have returned at all. The thing that bothered him, however, was the fact that they thought that their execution had been ordered by Altair.

All of the fault had been placed on the Arab's shoulders, he knew it wasn't right. At the moment the last thing he wanted was to talk to the pair women about it. He too headed up the stairs still shaken with the events that had occurred.

Altair was nowhere to be seen, the Italian merely headed towards his own room knowing no one was going to be stupid enough to disturb him before collapsing on his bed.

His troubled mind wouldn't stop thinking about the blond down in the torture chambers, the feeling of guilt that settled over him caused his lips to frown. He knew he shouldn't be thinking about her, he pushed her out of his thoughts and closed his eyes. Sleep took over his exhausted body and before he knew it he had fallen into a deep slumber.

The next morning, however, made him wish he was still in his room sleeping.

As soon as he entered the room where the high ranking members of the creed had breakfast in he knew something was bound to go wrong. Monica leaned up against one of the pillars with a pitcher in her hands while Annalise stood in front of another one holding a large silver tray.

The pair of women didn't even glance at him as he passed by and took a seat in front of Altair who stared down at his food with an irritated look.

"Maids? Out of all the things they could have been assigned to…and here?" Ezio asked in an outraged voice as Altair refused to look at him. The Arab was much too busy with keeping his own temper in check; he couldn't allow the Italian in front of him to distract him.

He too had found their position rather ridiculous, they were pitiful as maids. The shackles around their wrists restrained them from doing anything idiotic, that was the only relief that he could allow himself to feel.

He knew neither of them were going to try and kill them; there were too many assassins in the room for them to try. An attempt at it would be suicide.

Ezio stared at Annalise as she avoided eye contact with him; she hadn't changed despite the years. He shook his head trying to clear his thoughts as he stared at the plate that had been placed in front of him. Much like Altair, he didn't feel like eating with everything that was going through his head.

The fact that he had the woman he had longed for longer than any other before him troubled him, her feelings had obviously changed for him. He had moved on, he found himself biting down on his tongue in slight rage at his own actions. Perhaps if hadn't been so quick to replace her…

"You?" Karim asked staring at Monica as she was forced to pour water into his silver cup. He remembered her now; she had been Altair's favorite a couple of years ago. He thought she was dead…

"No, it's the goddamn Queen of England," Monica replied sarcastically making Annalise stop herself from bursting out with laughter. Just because they had been forced to work for the assassins didn't mean they were going to make it pleasant. It was only a matter of time before they escaped or the rest of the Diamond Dogs found out where they were being kept.

Ezio bit his bottom lip to suppress his own chuckle as Altair stared at him with a straight face.

"Ezio," the grandmaster snarled warningly. The Italian straightened his own face upon being reminded that they weren't dealing with the same women they had once known. He couldn't deny that he had missed their humor.

"Watch how you speak to your superiors, woman," another assassin warned Monica as she turned her annoyed eyes onto his own.

"Boy, watch how you speak to me," Monica snapped as the man rose from the table dangerously. Altair glanced sideways at the commotion with disinterest. The stature of the man before her clearly didn't seem to faze Monica. She stared back with the same defiant gaze she had used with him all those years ago.

The same assassin from before brought his hand back ready to hit her for insulting him in such a manner before she ducked and threw the water that she had inside of the pitcher at him. The room went quiet as the drenched assassin fumed silently, the vein in his neck standing out dangerously.

"It smells like wet dog, no?" Monica asked letting her Spanish accent through as her lip quirked upwards into a grin. Annalise held the tray over her face in order to hide her expression, she was dying of laughter from behind her cover.

"We'll see if you're laughing when Judas is through with you," the man threatened grabbing her neck roughly as he turned to look at Altair for permission.

"Watch the neck, Scooby, I bruise easily," Monica snapped as Annalise nearly dropped over trying not to laugh at her partner's humor despite the situation in which she was in.

"Master?" the assassin asked staring at Altair intently increasing the pressure around Monica's neck.

"Come on, just let him flog me," Monica commented eerily as Altair clenched his jaw trying to control himself. "Better yet, let them hang me like last time, put me out of my misery already, Altair," she added striking a nerve as Altair closed his eyes and grit his teeth. As much as his mind scolded him he nodded slowly letting the other assassin drag her to the courtyard, he could already feel guilt creeping into his mind.

"Altair," Ezio commented with worry as he watched the assassin drag Monica out by the back of her robes. Her piercing laughter reached their ears as Altair closed his eyes tightly refusing to run out and stop her punishment. He would not give in, he was doing the right thing he knew that.

His mind, however, wouldn't stop reminding him of everything Monica had done for him before. She had entertained him with her humor in the direst of situations and he repaid her by allowing her to be tortured.

"Oh come on, you guys actually eat this?" Annalise commented biting a piece of bread from the table with a bored expression on her face. The eyes that had been directed at the double doors of the entrance turned to her instantly.

"Would you like to join your friend, girl?" another assassin commented holding the knife in his hand with a tight grip as Annalise stared at him with a blank expression. She was clearly missing his threat; he stood and walked over to her with a calculative stride.

Ezio turned to look at her as well as he noticed the familiar gleam in her eyes, she was up to no good and he knew it. Altair refused to look at either of them; he kept his head low and fixed his eyes down at the floor.

"Shall we dance?" Annalise asked the assassin bowing when she saw him coming at her with the knife. She stepped out of the way easily as he lunged at her, "assassins: empty headed and slow," she stated turning and hitting the back of his head with the tray in her hands. The resounding thud reached everyone's ears as they watched one of their best fighters go down with a single hit. His body fell forward as he hit the floor unconscious and bleeding.

"They are nothing but trouble to us now," Altair commented upon witnessing what Annalise had just done. Several other assassins stood and after three more casualties with the tray they managed to restrain her and subdue her in front of Ezio and Altair.

"Master?" one of the assassins asked as Altair struggled with himself once more, his mind had to remind him that he was dealing with the one of the first Diamond Dogs. If it hadn't been for them he would still have the assassins that they had killed by his side.

"Do I get to pick out the color of my noose this time?" Annalise asked eagerly as Altair turned away from her. Ezio nodded slightly as the men started to drag her out of the room as well, the slamming of the door behind them startled the Italian and made him jump.

The room was left deserted except for him and Altair; they could hear the commotion that was going on in the courtyard as they both stood and looked down from the large windows at the end of the room.

"They believe I killed them," Altair stated blankly staring at the scene before him with a cold expression on his face, "how do you convince a resentful woman that you were never involved in her death…?" Ezio turned to look at him with pity; he couldn't even begin to comprehend the demons that haunted the man beside him.

"We need to get them out of here," the Italian commented looking at the Arab next to him. "Unless you'd like to see them die again," Ezio added as Altair turned to look at him sharply.

"Do not forget what they have done to us," Altair reminded him as Ezio shook his head upon remembering all of the assassins that the Dogs had killed. As much as he hated them for it he couldn't bring himself to see Annalise or Monica die again, it had been bad enough last time.

Altair turned away from the window when the first swing was delivered wishing to be deaf as Monica's screams reached his ears. Ezio closed his eyes and walked away unable to stand the sight of Annalise getting flogged by his own men.

"So this is where we find ourselves," Altair whispered catching Ezio's attention.

"You cannot allow this to happen, they will be hanged if they continue like this," Ezio told him as the grandmaster turned to look at him with a piercing gaze.

"What will you do when they are free, Ezio?" Altair asked seriously as the Italian stepped back upon hearing the question. "What will you tell Anna?" the Arab added as Ezio felt his hopes being torn away from him. He had forgotten the fact that he had already made his life without Annalise; he already had a woman to take care of. Anna loved him dearly and so did he…so why was his mind in such turmoil at Annalise's arrival?

He knew they had committed a fatal mistake when they moved on and decided to replace the pair outside. It was too late now to wonder why it could never be, there was no going back, he had too many things to take care of.

"And what of you, Altair?" Ezio asked as he watched the grandmaster freeze near the door. The Italian didn't fail to notice the slight drop in the man's shoulders. "What of Maria?" he asked stabbing the same knife into the Arab's heart before the door slammed shut behind him.

Ezio turned towards the open window once more upon hearing the screams that came from the courtyard. Fate had turned them against one another, he couldn't understand how they had let it escalate to the point of being unable to be in the same room with each other.

A sad smile spread throughout his features as he shook his head and spoke to himself.

"Let's face it old man, we both made a mistake…now we are paying for it."


	9. Tears of an Angel

**Tears of an Angel**

**A/N: Well, the last chappie got alot of mixed reviews, I hope this one is a bit better my dears, enjoy! I would do side notes but it is currently 6 AM and I havent slept at all so read and let me know if it was to your liking! XD **

_"Cover my eyes, _

_Cover my ears,_

_Tell me these words are a lie..."_

_-RyanDan,_

Altair watched with calm eyes as the Italian before him paced in front of the large desk in his study. The Arab resisted the urge to stand and hold him in one place; instead, he twirled the pen in his hand nervously.

Every now and then Ezio would pause and glance out of the window before shaking his head and resuming the never-ending pacing.

"Enough," Altair warned him slamming his hand down against the wooden surface of the desk and standing. The Italian turned to look at him with startled eyes as the grandmaster walked over to the large window overlooking the darkened courtyard.

Ezio watched as Altair sneered before throwing the pen in his hand aside.

"We have to do something, they will be brought before the creed in a few hours, Altair," the Italian reminded him. The Arab closed his eyes in irritation before looking out the large window that overlooked the bloodied courtyard.

His mind wouldn't stop replaying the screams that had echoed off of the walls when they were being tortured. Altair rubbed the bridge of his nose trying to still the demons that laughed at him inside of his head.

Ezio stared at the man in front of him with concern before crouching to retrieve the tossed pen.

"What of the creed?" Altair whispered leaning against the window frame with his head hung low. He couldn't even begin to think of what he would do if any of his assassins found out about the story behind the pair of women in the cells below.

Hadar and Karim had been the only ones to remember them and they had already been warned to keep silent.

"I say…to hell with the creed," Ezio replied looking at the grandmaster trying to persuade him. Altair chuckled to himself; he shook his head at the predicament he had landed himself in. Perhaps it would have been better if she had shot him in the head when they had crossed paths, it would have saved him from the guilt and agony that tormented him.

"Ezio," Altair started as the young Italian looked at him intently, "do you want to be hunted by your own men?" the Arab asked with a smile on his face. Ezio looked at him and grimaced, he had a good point.

"If it would ensure her life, then yes," Ezio replied confidently, after all, he had trained half of the assassins within the creed. He knew what he was getting himself into and how to deal with each individual if they got in his way.

"She tried to kill you, have you forgotten?" the Arab reminded him as Ezio stepped back. He kept stabbing knife after knife of painful truth into his heart. A picture of the blond in the cells below crossed his mind easing his troubled thoughts at once.

"It has been six years since I saw her die," Ezio told the man before him, "she was everything to me," the Italian confessed as Altair resisted the urge to laugh. It was as if the assassin before him could read his mind, "I will not go through that again," the young man continued confidently.

"You are forgetting yourself, boy," Altair cut in, his grin dropping down into a sneer once more, "Anna should be the one to raise concern in your mind, not her," the Arab snapped making Ezio snarl.

"Let me state this for both of us already, old man," the Italian growled taking a hold of Altair's robes and pinning him against the glass window. "We have both committed a grave mistake," he continued as Altair refused to back down, he held the Italian's gaze coldly, "I have paid for my sins for long enough, I will not be tormented with watching her hang when I can change it." Altair continued to stare at him without uttering a single word. "Anna will still hold my heart in her hand but I cannot look bear upon Annalise's dead body again, it shattered everything within me last time."

"What do you want me to do?" Altair snapped back shoving Ezio away as the Italian shook his head and laughed at his mentor, the pitch lowering dangerously before it cased all together.

"You're killing yourself Altair! You're burning in an inferno that you created for yourself!" Ezio barked back making Altair shake his head slightly in denial. "I do not know who you are anymore, I can swear before God that you completely lost yourself," the Italian continued throwing back every vocal knife the Arab before him had stabbed into him. "Enough, talk to her…she will understand," the Italian begged trying to save whatever was left of the man in front of him.

Altair turned away from him before closing his eyes once more; he tried to still all of the memories that were trying to resurface.

"Calm the storm, you will have to decide, Altair," Ezio stated as Altair frowned once more. It was during times like these that he bowed to Ezio; the Italian was wiser than any other man he had ever had the honor to cross paths with. "Will it be her death or your pride?" Ezio finalized turning away from him.

"Leave me," the grandmaster ordered refusing to look at him, he kept his eyes fixed on the blood splatters on the courtyard. The Italian shook his head before turning away.

"I had Karim take Annalise out of her cell, she will be with me until dawn," Ezio added stopping near the door. Altair didn't give an indication that he had heard or cared. "Maria is sleeping, use this time wisely, old man."

Altair heard the door close behind the Italian as he slammed his fist up against the window. A mass of sliver shards cascaded down on him as he watched the window shatter. The hand that he had been brought down upon the clear glass cringed in pain before blood started to seep down from the cuts.

The grandmaster shook his head and shut out the pain, he had more troubling matters to attend to. Ezio's words kept running through his head, a part of him refused to see the truth behind them. He had never stooped down enough to talk to a woman and explain himself, the thought didn't appeal to him.

He shook his head, he knew he had to talk to her, there was no way she would start the conversation. She had tried to kill him after all; she had even dared to spit at his feet. The ordeal had been put behind him by now, she was still breathing because of the past that they had. It didn't change the fact that it pained him to see the hate in her eyes directed at him only.

His feet carried him out of the room but not before picking up a small animal on his way out. He made his way down towards the holding cells each step becoming heavier than the last as he descended the stairs loudly knowing that no one else would be present but her.

"I've had enough for one day," Monica snapped hearing the footsteps approaching her cell, her head swayed slightly due to her lack of sleep. That didn't stop her from turning to look at the man that had entered, she froze when she realized who it was.

"I am not here to torture you," Altair replied stopping a few feet away from her cell. Stiglitz picked his head up and flicked his ears upon hearing the assassin. The cat meowed and stepped through the bars before rubbing up against his leg while purring. Monica watched her cat favor the assassin that had wronged her with weary eyes before turning away from him.

"What do you want?" she growled back wishing for him to leave silently. Another minute and she would be reaching through the bars to strangle him.

"A civil conversation, that is all," Altair shot back trying to keep his temper in check. He had forgotten how unnerving the woman before him was. His eyes landed on the white bandages that had been wrapped around her back.

Monica's brow rose upon hearing his response before a cackle escaped through her lips. She stood slowly and turned to face him with an expression of pure pain due to her lacerated back.

"Civil?" she laughed half amused before shaking her head, "you call being lashed twenty times, civil?"

Altair frowned slightly upon hearing her; he shifted slightly and continued to hold the animal in his arms securely before looking up at her. Monica tilted her head slightly upon seeing something white poking out from the assassin's crossed arms, she ignored it and turned her blazing gaze onto him.

"I am not here to argue with you," he told her calmly as she scoffed and let her arms rest on the bars before shifting her weight onto one of her legs in irritation.

"Enlighten me, why has the great Altair Ibn-La'Ahad come down to meet with a Diamond Dog in the middle of the night?" she asked sneering his name resisting the urge to lung at him through the bars.

Altair sighed quietly when he heard her tone; there was no winning with her.

"There is something that has been bothering me," he started stepping forward while she straightened herself up and stepped back away from the bars. "You still think I ordered your death, do you not?" he asked her as her eyes narrowed dangerously.

"I know you did," she snarled as Altair shook his head and stepped up to the bars. He purposely kept his stance at ease; if she tried anything he wouldn't be able to stop her. Monica stared at him with slight confusion; it wasn't like him to drop his guard to that degree. It made her stop and actually want to listen to what he had to say.

"Would you find it strange if I denied it?" he asked quietly leaning forward. Monica blinked several times before parting her lips to say something back. Nothing came out, why would he deny it?

Altair pulled himself back and rested his back against the bars; Monica resisted the urge to drop her jaw. She could easily reach out, crack his neck, and rid herself of him if she wished. She found her body frozen refusing to do anything she commanded as his voice broke her out of her thoughts.

"While you were being hanged my horse was lying on the ground…dead from having being ridden for three days straight," he told her as she looked at his back with confusion written all over her features. Stiglitz kept rubbing his leg with his muzzle while Altair merely ignored the cat.

"A few seconds were all I needed, just a few and I would have been able to stop the execution," his voice informed her as she shook her head refusing to let the truth sink in.

"I was too late but the creed paid," Altair added with a light laugh. "I killed everyone within the grounds, Jamil's body bled out after I cut his skin off for his treachery," he commented remembering the day all too well.

"What?" Monica breathed unable to grasp what he had just told her. Jamil had told them that he had ordered their execution, how could he refuse the accusation.

"I never ordered your death," he replied turning his head slightly to look at her, "I find it absurd that you believed that rat's lie."

Monica remained speechless as she watched Stiglitz step back into her cell and meow at her wishing for attention. It suddenly hit her, why was her cat still alive if Altair had hated her enough to order her death? It didn't make sense.

"Six years, it has been six years since then," Altair's voice reminded her as she blinked once more unable to believe what he was telling her. "Why do you think that thing is still alive?" he asked pointing to Stiglitz, she shook her head in denial. She remembered how much he hated the feline at her feet; he would have killed it when she died as well.

"No…" she whispered stepping back once more.

"Why do you think I didn't have my men kill you when you spat at me?" he asked once more turning to face her as she refused to look at him. Everything was starting to make sense to her, how could she have let hate blind her to that degree?

"It's not true," she replied holding her head with one hand while closing her eyes wishing for everything around her to be a nightmare.

"Explain it all to me," he demanded grabbing the bundle in his arms with one hand. He held it by the scruff of its neck before holding it out for her through the bars.

Monica stared at the white oriental cat that Altair held out for her with horrified eyes, the feline merely meowed in protest upon being held by its neck. She looked up at the man before her as the realization started to finally hit her.

"You got another?" she asked taking it from him with shaking hands as Altair let go of it. She knew he hated cats, the fact that he had gotten another seemed to support everything that he had just told her.

"Adrine insisted that I name it Landa," Altair told her as she smiled sadly at the cat in her arms. The feline merely pawed at her cheek in curiosity while purring. She remembered telling Adrine about her plan to get another cat and what she wanted to name it before everything had happened. The assassin had gone ahead and bought it after her death, he had even bothered in naming it like she had wanted, she started to see the truth behind the lie that they had believed all those years ago.

"It was all a lie," she murmured looking up from the cat at the man that she had been planning to kill. She couldn't shake the feeling of stupidity that settled over her when she realized all of the times that she had refused to see the truth. Annalise had even commented that she had heard Ezio's voice seconds before she died, he had attempted to stop her from being hanged.

Altair stared at her calmly upon seeing her expression turn back into the woman he had known all those years ago. The hate and resentment that had been evident before seemed to fade for a second; the relief that settled over him was indescribable.

"You know the truth now," Altair told her as he stepped back.

"You couldn't tell me sooner?" she asked outraged as she placed the white feline down next to Stiglitz and pressed her body up against the bars. "Do you have any idea of how many of your men I've killed?" she yelled at him waving her arm in an angered manner as he stared at her with an amused expression. The woman he knew was back, her vengeful counterpart was still present but not as much as before.

"Oh, I am aware of the crimes that the Diamond Dog before me has committed," he stated. Her demanding expression made him resist the urge to roll his eyes. "We are both to blame, the fault does not rest on your shoulders alone," he explained as she huffed and stepped back from the bars.

"You are aware of what that makes us, aren't you?" she asked slightly saddened by the fact.

"If I wanted to kill my rival, I would have already done so," he replied with a bored expression before raising his arm reminding her of the hidden blade that was strapped to his forearm.

"We could have avoided all of this, Altair," she commented grimacing when the reality of the crimes that she had committed against him and his creed became clear to her.

"You cannot change the past," he replied flicking his wrist making the blade slide out and gleam under the dim lighting eerily. He walked over to her and pressed the blade up to her neck upon finding her frozen once more. "I shall not alter the future by killing you here, either," he whispered to her pulling back suddenly letting her breathe before turning to leave.

"Altair," she called after him as he stopped and looked over his shoulder at her impatiently, "I messed up didn't I?" she admitted as his shoulders shook while he laughed lightly at her. She stared at him in confusion before he started to leave.

"We both did," his voice called back to her before she heard the door close behind him. She sunk down onto the ground with a defeated look. Both of the cats curled up next to her, she ran a hand over their coats before finally letting all of the unshed tears fall.

"God, what have I done?"

OoOoOoOoOoOoO

Annalise woke in a cold sweat upon reliving one of the sessions with the Spaniard in her dreams before sitting up on a bed. She dropped the hand that she had been holding up to her face in a confused manner before running it over the silk sheets beneath her.

Her head tilted as she combed through her mind, she was unable to remember how she had gotten there. The large room was darkened considerably due to the curtains that had been pulled over the windows; her eyes were having a hard time adjusting.

"What the hell?" she whispered to herself as she swung her legs over the edge and tried to stand. The familiar burning sensation that came from her back, however, refused to let her up. She sat back down in a defeated manner before closing her eyes.

She opened them and tried to see her surroundings before a voice broke her out of her thoughts.

"You still sleep with one arm hung over the side," the familiar voice commented as she looked around for the source, "at least that has not changed about you."

"Where are you?" she demanded angrily wishing to strangle him. His betrayal still stung every time his name crossed her mind or an image of him surfaced in her thoughts.

"You still fear the dark as well, come now, I thought a Diamond Dog was supposed to overcome that," Ezio scolded as Annalise growled. She hated the fact that he could see straight through her, she felt venerable in the darkness that surrounded her.

"I see you still use it to your advantage," she shot back snapping her head to the side when she saw movement out of the corner of her eye. Sure enough there he was, standing like he had done so many times before on the windowsill with that grin that had never ceased to amaze her. "Why am I here?" she asked him as he sighed and prepared to tell her the truth.

"Has it ever crossed your mind, that perhaps it was never Altair who ordered your death?" he asked refusing to move from his spot. She stared at him intently before the same doubt started to creep in through her mind.

"No," she lied sneering at him trying to hate the man before her.

"_Bella, _I could always tell when you were lying," he replied laughing at her. She grit her teeth in anger before standing abruptly despite the pain that shot up her back.

"Too bad I never had that ability," she shot back as his laughter ceased. He shook his head at her and motioned for her to sit back down.

"You'll irritate the wound further, I recall you scolding Monica over it, do not tell me you are ignoring your own advice," he told her as she clenched her jaw to the point of it aching in protest. She sat down unable to stand for more than a few moments as he walked over to her.

She tensed immediately and readied herself for the worst only to have him brush past and grab the glass of wine that had been left on the nightstand beside her.

"What do you want, Ezio?" she asked wishing to leave and go back to the damp cell rather than remaining in the same room with him.

"For you to hear the truth," he answered sipping the wine and setting it down before looking at her. Her vision by this time had improved; she could clearly make him out in the dark. He hadn't changed a bit over the last few years.

"I already know the truth," she snapped at him before he shook his head once more and sighed.

"No, you do not," he started, "Jamil lied to you," he told her as her eyes shot over to look at him. After receiving nothing but silence Ezio proceeded to continue. "Did it not seem strange that you are alive still?" he asked her as she pulled back and thought his question through.

Her eyes left his for a brief second before they returned, the Italian smiled once he saw the doubt that she had in them.

"Who do you think ordered the Spaniard to stop halfway through the punishment in the courtyard?" he asked again as she started to reply only to get cut off once more.

"Better yet, why are you here with me instead of the cold cell where they threw you in?" he continued as she shrunk under his imposing stature. Everything was starting to crumble around her, her stubborn and resistant side started to fade away. She wasn't stupid enough to deny the facts that he was stating, something was clearly wrong with what they had been told.

"It can't be true," she replied still clinging to the idea that she had been betrayed. She felt him take a hold of her face and force her to look at him as he leaned down and stopped inches away from her face.

"Do you not remember, Annalise?" he whispered to her as she closed her eyes trying to push him away but failing to do so. "Tell me that the memory of me trying to stop them has not slipped your mind," he demanded applying pressure to her jaw as she winced in pain.

She couldn't say anything as he let her go. The sound of his retreating footsteps reached her ears; still, she refused to open her eyes. She was afraid of losing her composure if she did.

The memory of him yelling at the executioner to stop hadn't been forgotten but after six years Jamil's lie had outweighed the possibility of Ezio remaining loyal to her. She found herself realizing that she had been naïve back then; she had allowed the devil to trick and deceive her.

"You doubted my love for you back then, did you not?" she heard him ask once more. A tone of sorrow and regret tinged his words as he spoke, she could tell something about her was troubling her.

"I-" she started but stopped unable to finish her own sentence. She regretted ever doubting the man before her, she couldn't believe she had allowed hate to cloud her senses.

"You have changed, _bella," _Ezio spoke, "you have become what I tried to protect you from."

"You never told me this!" she exclaimed in anger shoving him away. Ezio stumbled back; he hadn't been expecting her to do something like that.

"I never knew you could actually come back..I held your dead body in my arms, what was I supposed to think?" he shot back refusing to back down from the woman before him. She had become stronger over time, more stubborn, and defiant.

"The Diamond Dogs were created out of your foolishness, I have killed so many assassins because of you," she shouted clearly upset as Ezio held his ground, "I was better off locked in my cell."

"I have killed my fair share of Dogs, neither of us is innocent," he replied trying to ease her guilt as she shook her head at him and headed for the door. Ezio stared at her with regret; he wasn't the same man as before. He couldn't just rush over to her side and hold her, beg her to forgive him, kiss her until all of her worries were gone.

She stopped as her hand gripped the handle on the door, "what has the world turned us into?" she asked quietly. Ezio stared at her fighting the urge to stop her and keep her with him hidden away from the world.

The Italian kept his eyes on her bandaged back as she opened the door and closed it behind her not waiting for a response. He didn't follow after her, he knew there were no assassins out in the halls at this hour nor were there any guards.

Annalise walked down the hall, her steps quiet as ever as she headed down towards the lower levels once more. Escaping was out of the question, she was bound to attract attention if she attempted it. Nor would she leave her partner behind, if death came for them then they would greet it together with heads held high.

She felt a single tear escape from her eyes as she tried to hold back everything that she was feeling, all of the emotions that had surfaced upon hearing the truth. She asked herself single question that she hadn't been able to answer ever since the day she had killed her first target, tears were streaming down her face by then.

"What have I become?"

**Review!**


	10. You're Not Mine

**You're Not Mine**

**A/N:Well, enjoy my dears, side notes:**

**XxKiwahxX: I wish it was that easy XD**

**DanAlaya: Yes, I am writing this for you ;D Every time I update I look forward to your reviews, Im glad you're liking the story so far, I'll simply say that since I would never finish if i took it into detail, let me know what you thought of this chapter and I will gladly reply with more detail the next time (I havent slept in like 48 hours) -_- I see like a jumble of letters right now, the horrors of insomnia D:  
**

**penstrokenxay : They haven't found out, not yet at least!**

**selen: You'll see ;D**

**miruka67: Sadly they didn't run away together XD**

**Jenbuscus: Everyone seemed to have like the cat :D I hope you enjoy this chappie! **

"It's gonna happen again isn't it?" Annalise asked quietly with her back to the bars. Monica glanced at her briefly before glancing outside of her cell with calculative eyes analyzing every guard that passed by.

"No," Monica replied catching Annalise's attention. She turned to look at her partner in alarm once she saw how her eyes lit up every time an assassin walked by close to her cell. The blond knew that look, the moment one of the guards walked too close to the cell she was going to snap their necks and use their blade for a lock pick.

"Monica," Annalise warned upon seeing her reach out for a passing guard. The brunette cursed and pulled her hand back in when her partner broke her concentration.

"What? Do you want to hang again?" she asked dangerously. Annalise shook her head, she couldn't explain it, she knew something was going to aid them. They just had to wait a little longer.

The jingling of the cell keys brought both of them back down to earth, simultaneously their heads snapped over to the stairs in horror. Karim was followed by Hadar, each with their own set of keys; Monica cursed and backed away from the cell door while Annalise shook her head in horror. She couldn't die; she didn't want to hang again.

"Come, it's time," Karim warned the brunette unlocking her cell door as she refused to get near him. He sighed and walked into the cell before she tried to run from him. The shackle around her ankle stopped her making her cry out in desperation.

Annalise merely avoided Hadar as much as she possibly could, she even managed to get in a few good hits before the assassin got off hold of her hands and pulled them behind her back. Both of them struggled madly as they were pushed up the stairs painfully aware of the ropes that awaited them just beyond the wooden doors.

"Relax, play along," Karim whispered into Monica's ear as she froze and turned back to look at him. She wasn't about to go and trust an assassin just yet. She continued to fight his hold with a horrified look on her face when he opened the door.

"No!" Annalise yelled trying her hardest to hold her ground to prevent Hadar from dragging her over to the hanging black noose that gleamed under the moonlight.

"Easy, nothing is going to happen," he whispered to her as her fear got the better of her. She started to hyperventilate while he led her through the crowd of sneering assassins, some even taking hits at her. She tried her best to dodge them all but failed after a few earning herself several hits to the stomach and a few to her face.

"No! Not again!" Monica cried in utter terror as her eyes landed on the executioner that greeted her. Before she could be shoved up the stairs like last time, however, the pair of assassins that they had been plotting to kill appeared before them. She stared at Altair with bloodshot eyes before struggling once more; she wasn't going down without a fight.

Altair stared at her from beneath his hood, the deep frown that was placed on his lips was virtually invisible due to the shadow that his robe casted. It pained him dearly to see her in such despair, especially when he was the cause of it. He held his head high pretending to ignore her as she reached out for him desperately.

It took everything within him to hold back and resist the urge to tear her from Karim's hold. The knife that had been stabbed into his heart kept going in further as she looked around like a cornered animal with no way out; he stepped forward but restrained himself immediately. He would not lose his control now, not when she needed him.

Ezio stared at Altair from beneath his hood; he could feel the turmoil that the assassin beside him was feeling. He had seen the step he took forward; he had been prepared to stop him should he blow their façade. He had to admit that acting like he was indifferent about the blond in front of him drained his energy instantly. His jaw clenched in restrain every time he heard her cry out, his hand clenched to the point of it pain shooting up his arm every time she fought against Hadar.

Annalise stared at the Italian before her pleadingly, she had a phobia of nooses ever since they had been executed with one of them. She shook her head when Hadar forced her down onto the ground, she stared at the dirt ground beneath her, so this was how it would end once more.

Monica ran her hand across the dark soil beneath her before something caught her eye. She saw Altair shift slightly revealing a glimmering object just beneath is boot. Her breathing hitched as she looked at Annalise who by this time had also noticed something strange beneath Ezio's own boot.

"Bow down before them and ask for forgiveness before you hang," Karim ordered shoving Monica forward as she fell face first inches away from Altair's form. He winced inwardly and restrained himself from helping her up as he moved away from her slowly.

She reached for the soil beneath his feet and grabbed a handful of dirt before kneeling before him. Annalise looked up at Ezio with confusion once the assassin moved away from her revealing what he had carefully hidden beneath his foot.

Annalise reached carefully for the patch of dirt and held it between her hands as she was heaved up and held in place. Monica stumbled up the stairs as she was practically hurled up by Karim; she regained her balance and started to work on the rope tied around her wrists with desperation.

Annalise watched with horror as the executioner approached her partner with the same colored sack that they had placed over their heads six years ago.

"I'd like to hang without it," Monica requested as the man turned to look at Altair who merely nodded in approval. Monica clenched her hands upon feeling the blood rush into them again before staring down at the small blade in between her palms. She kept her hands together making it look as if they were still tied, she looked at Annalise discreetly.

The blond stared back with a grin placed on her expression, she wiggled her fingers at her partner letting her know she too was free by now. The blond glanced sideways and noted the lack of guards near the entrance of the creed, no doubt courtesy of the pair of assassins that had given them the blades.

"Any last words?" the executioner asked as he neared Monica with the noose. The men around her looked intently at her still form. She rose her head and nodded quietly, the man next to her stopping for her to say what she needed to say.

"Go to hell," she snarled kicking him down from the scaffolding before running for the entrance. Annalise kicked Hadar off before rushing over to the open gates. Altair and Ezio hesitated feigning surprise and shock before shouting orders at their men.

"Bring them back!" Altair thundered as his assassins flew by, hidden blades out and ready. Ezio stared at the man beside him before the pair took off after the women. It would look suspicious if they remained behind; both of them checked their own blades before splitting up at the entrance knowing that the women wouldn't remain together.

Ezio searched through the empty Venetian streets with a panicked look on his face, what if they found her? What if they managed to catch her? What if they had already killed her? Endless questions ran through his mind as he looked around desperately. His breathing came in short rapid bursts as he stopped to rest and observe his surroundings.

"Ezio, will you ever learn?" her voice teased as he tensed up and looked around. She was in her element now. She was a Diamond Dog after all, they hunted at night, she used the shadows to her advantage.

"_Bella, _if you are caught," he warned, his breathing ragged as she appeared in front of him seemingly stepping out of the shadows.

"I'll kill whoever tires to take my freedom from me," she replied tilting her head. Ezio looked up at her from his doubled over form before regaining his breath and standing to his full height. He glanced around to make sure no one saw him talking with her.

He calmed when her hand caressed the side of his face, for a moment it felt as if she had never left. As if everything was as it should be, he knew better. He stepped away before Annalise dropped her hand in understanding. The pained look in his eyes said it all, she stepped back knowing that she was losing precious time that she could be using to run.

"Does she make you happy, Ezio?" she asked knowing the reason behind the Italians sudden rejection. The question echoed around in his mind, did she? He kept asking himself the same question over and over again. He had been so sure before, now, after the question had been asked out loud he found himself doubting Anna for the first time.

Annalise started to turn away from him upon taking his silence as a yes, he reached out and gripped her arm unable to part with her like that. They couldn't just turn their back on each other and pretend like nothing had happened, like nothing had been present between them.

"Where will you go?" he asked wishing to at least know her location. She resisted the urge to snort at the question; did he seriously expect her to tell him that? As she turned to look at him, however, all of her will and self-control faded away. She felt her breath hitch in her throat as she looked at him, the pleading expression that he showed only for her made her heart skip a beat.

"Either Persia or India," she whispered to him as he nodded and tried to turn away from her as well. His mind wouldn't stop reminding him that he had been waiting far too long for this moment; he wouldn't let it go by so easily.

"You will not come back," he realized as she nodded her head slowly. The fact that they had discovered where their creed was made it impossible for them to remain in Venice. The only option they had was to move the location someplace else, somewhere where it wouldn't be found as easily.

"We can't stay here, Ezio," she told him as he looked sideways unable to hold her gaze. She sighed and reached up to cup his cheek once more. She didn't think meeting him would evoke the feelings that she had buried deep inside of her years ago. This time, however, he closed his eyes and leaned into her touch.

She gasped quietly when she felt his lips kiss her palm before he trailed down to her wrist. She tried to pull away before the situation went any further but found herself completely succumbed to him. He had always had that effect on her, she found herself melting in his grasp as he pinned her up against a nearby wall.

"Ezio," she whispered running a hand through his hair while pulling his hood down. He smirked at her before he leaned down and captured her lips with his. For a brief moment of pure bliss he was able to forget everything around him, all of the rules, all of the contracts, all of his problems disappeared for a few seconds.

His arm constricted around her waist pulling her to him needing to feel her closer after all of the years he had spent dreaming of this moment. She complied and sighed while holding on to his robes, she had longed for him ever since she had gotten back.

His lips left hers and ghosted over her jaw before she felt him kiss the sensitive skin on her neck. She gasped in surprise and held on to his robes with a death grip that only earned her a growl from the back of his neck. The vibration against her neck made her shiver with pleasure before she looked over his shoulder and caught a sight of a young couple making their way through the lonely streets.

The pure elation and pleasure that he had made her feel started to fade away as she noticed how they looked at each other. She caught a glimpse of them whispering into each other's ears obviously trusting one another to keep their secrets.

Trust.

"Ezio," she called pulling away from the Italian who had been on the edge of losing himself to her. He pulled back upon hearing the change in her voice and noticed what she had been staring at. His mind instantly cursed him as he remembered Anna, how could he let himself go like that.

He dropped his head and let it rest on the wall besides her scolding himself for being so selfish and stupid. Ezio turned to look at Annalise upon noticing her distressed look; she shook her head and turned away from him when he reached over to comfort her.

"And now?" he asked her with sadness in his voice. Her blazing eyes turned to look at him in an instant as she stepped away and shook her head at him.

"How can you talk of now?" she replied looking back at the hurt look on his expression. She knew it would pain him to hear what she had to say but she had to say what was on her mind. The girl that he had now deserved him, not her, he no longer belonged to her. She smiled realizing he never had.

"For us…there is no 'now'," she told him, her voice cracking at the end. She turned away and ran from him knowing that it was probably going to be the last time she would see him. Ezio stared after her with his mouth slightly parted, the words that he had wanted to tell her died in his throat.

She was right; he realized that as he sunk down onto the ground beneath him holding his head unable to bear the image of her denying him. She wasn't his to claim, he already had Anna, he had no right. He shook his head and stopped the assassins that were about to run in the same direction that she had just run off to.

"She went that way," he told them pointing them in the wrong direction. The group of assassins gave him questioning glances; he ignored them and held his head once more.

He repeated the words that she had just told him with a sorrowful tone to them. He could feel his heart breaking in two, on one side he held her and on the other he held Anna.

"For us, there is no now…"

OoOoOoOoOoOoOoO

Altair stood in the middle of a courtyard, his body tense as he tried to hear the slightest movement. The clinking of metal reached his ears before his arm was cut open. He cursed and looked around holding up his own weapon; he had run into several Diamond Dogs who had been searching for the pair that they had just set loose.

"Come, assassin," one of them laughed mockingly as he turned towards the source and hurled a knife at the darkness hoping to hit one of them. Before he knew it he felt another sting on his back. He turned but found nothing but an empty space beside him.

"I hate Dogs," he mumbled to himself. They used mind games to take down their targets; he would rather go in for the kill than to toy with his targets. By this time, however, he had only managed to kill two and the wounds were already starting to drain his energy. He wouldn't last any longer if this continued.

"Leave him," Monica's voice ordered as several protests and whines came from different locations. Altair managed to pinpoint the all; he reached for another knife before silence greeted him.

"Enough," he growled warningly at her as her laugh reached his ears. He looked around desperately for the source knowing she was a force to be reckoned with when it came to manipulating her voice, she could make it seem as if she were behind him when she was really several feet away.

"I'm done playing games, Altair," her voice commented as she stepped out of the shadows. The assassin before her stared at her, she had clearly been equipped by the other Dogs that he had been dealing with. Her right hand was covered with a clawed silver gauntlet that gleamed eerily in the moonlight.

"You do not have long, by dawn the entire city will be searching for you," he reminded her once he saw the nonchalant pace at which she observed her surroundings with. She had her back to him; it was a perfect opportunity to rid himself of one of the two leaders of the Diamond Dogs. Much like her he found his body unable to respond to his commands, he growled in irritation before she turned to look at him.

"By dawn I will no longer be here," she told him as his eyes shot up to look at her wishing for an explanation. She dropped the humor and sighed while running the claws at the tips of her fingers over the walls. The scraping that came from it did little to ease Altair's mind.

"We can't stay here, we have to move," she told him with a sad smile, "I actually liked it here," she commented before she ran her hand down the wall harshly creating deep scratch marks on the wall.

"Where will you go to?" Altair asked half expecting her to answer.

"Persia or India, somewhere where I can ride camels," she commented with an amused expression, "I lost my touch with horses," she confessed refusing to tell him the full story. Altair nodded wearily not understanding why he suddenly felt tired and drained.

She stood beside him with a sorrowful smile placed on her lips. He couldn't help but look at her, he wished he could rewind time, go back six years and fix everything that he hadn't mended.

It was too late now.

"She's pretty," he heard Monica say beside him as he fixed his eyes onto her unchanging expression. She smiled refusing to look at him, "Maria, you're lucky," she told him as he looked away from her.

"How?" he asked her wishing for answers before her light laughter filled his ears. He was going to miss the sound.

"She came down to the cellars a day ago to try and change my bandages, I threatened to carve her face if she touched me," Monica told him as he chuckled quietly beside her. She turned and smiled at him glad that he had found her threat amusing, "she threatened to send you after me, it then clicked, the look in her eyes when your name came up," she told him shaking her head. "It's unmistakable Altair; she's going to be a good wife."

"Wife? How old do you think I am?" he asked unable to stop himself as she burst into a fit of laughter beside him completely forgetting that she had to stay quiet to avoid the assassins that were still out hunting for her.

"Old enough," she replied as he tensed and turned to look at her.

"The fact that I am far more skilled than you does not mean-" he started before she dropped her mouth open in shock.

"I can take you down in a second, Altair, do not compare skills with me," she shot back as he stepped back and tilted his head at her.

"I rather doubt it…girl," he replied as she resisted the urge to scream at him. She pulled her fist back and brought it down upon him before he caught it and twisted her arm around her back. She sighed in irritation before hooking one of her legs around his own and tugging on it. He fell backwards clearly caught off guard as she straddled his waist in victory.

"You're losing your touch, old man," she whispered in his ear mockingly. She realized he wasn't that old anyway, only five years separated them. She started to pull away before realizing that he had a hold of one of her hands, she stared down at him in confusion before he reversed their roles in an instant.

"And you are barely discovering your own," he replied as she froze beneath him. His weight did little to snap her out of her trance as he started to lean down. She closed her eyes knowing that it was wrong, she couldn't take the place of another. She turned her face away from him seconds before he would actually meet her lips and rose her head slightly to sing into his ear.

"_Once upon another time…_

_Our story had only begun, _

_You chose to turn the page, _

_And I made choices too…"_

She rose and sat against the wall that she had closest to her. Altair dropped his head in defeat knowing she was right and rested it on her collarbone as a single tear rolled down her cheek. She couldn't have picked more fitting lyrics for what they had brought upon themselves. Altair couldn't believe that after six years of silence he was finally hearing her voice once more. But this wasn't how he had wanted it to be, it was all wrong.

"_Once Upon that other time, _

_We did what we thought must be done,_

_And now we have no choice,_

_We do what we must do…"_

Altair refused to move even when he heard the familiar clinging of metal, the guards were starting their shifts, sooner or later they were going to run into them. He couldn't believe that God was being this cruel to him, tearing away the only thing he had ever wanted only to replace it with another. Now He was being inhuman, how dare He return her to him now? Now, that he had made his life with another.

"_We love,_

_We live,_

_We give what we can give,_

_And take what little we deserve…."_

Monica stopped once she looked up at the sky and noticed the orange and red splashes tinting the clouds. Dawn was approaching, she had to move fast if she was going to make it out of the city alive. She pulled away from Altair despite the agony that it caused her and rose from the ground before looking back at the assassin that now stood behind her.

"You have Maria now, do not lose her as well, Altair," she whispered back to him before she disappeared into the fading shadows leaving him standing there with a deep ache in his chest. How could he possibly have known that they would come back?

"Master did you find one of them?" one of his assassins asked as a group of them surrounded him. He refused to look away from the spot where she had disappeared from.

"Master?" another one asked in concern as Altair turned away from them and headed back to the creed. He crossed paths with Ezio while on his way back, the pair walked side by side knowing what bothered them.

When they arrived at the creed, however, their minds were sent into even more confusion and turmoil upon seeing the pair that were waiting for them at the gates.

"Altair you have been gone all night, did they get away?" Maria asked going to his side and pulling him inside upon noticing his unresponsiveness.

"Ezio, are you alright?" Anna asked descending the stairs to meet him. The Italian looked up at the woman that he had chosen willingly before directing his gaze elsewhere.

"Nothing is right anymore, Anna," he whispered heading up towards his room, "nothing."

**Review!**


	11. Spaniard

**Spaniard**

**A/N: It's too late to do little side notes this time guys, Im like seeing double over here -_- Hope you enjoy the chapter! **

"Altair, it is late, why does the escape of those women affect you so?" Maria asked standing beside Altair. The assassin next to her didn't even bother in glancing at her; if he did he knew he would lose the little control he had over himself.

The glass of wine in his hand shattered upon him thinking of the events that had just occurred hours ago. Altair cursed and hurled the remaining shards in his hand at the wall making Maria jump back in alarm. She quickly got out of his way when the bottle of the expensive red liquor flew by and shattered against the wall as well.

"Altair?" she asked in concern reaching out to him with a cautious hand. He had his back to her, she couldn't see the smile that was placed on his face, he couldn't believe how easily Monica came back into his life. In mere moments she had torn down the walls that Maria had taken years in getting through. She had practically turned his life and his creed upside down in a matter of minutes.

Maria approached him slowly ready to turn and run at any moment. He terrified her when he was in one of his moods. At the moment, however, she couldn't shake the feeling off that he was keeping something from her.

She placed a hesitant hand on his shoulder and turned him around; she was greeted with the same assassin that she always saw. His face was blank once more blocking her out while preventing her from reading his emotions. Maria sighed in desperation, he still didn't trust her, after everything they had been through he couldn't even drop the mask for her.

"What troubles you?" she whispered taking his face into her hands, Altair kept his gaze away from the woman in front of him. He could register her shy caresses but his mind was someplace else by now.

He clenched his jaw trying to keep the memories at bay but failed to do so when he heard Maria speak.

"Why can't this be the man that I always see?" she asked quietly, one of her fingers brushing over the scar on his lips. He felt himself pull back upon remembering Monica, she had done the same. Maria stared at him sadly when he backed away from her touch, his eyes opened in an instant and locked with hers. She couldn't decipher what he was thinking, she had a feeling it had something to do with his previous outburst, it didn't seem right to her.

Altair remained silent as she approached him once more, he found himself taking a step back from her in slight confusion, he wasn't sure if it was Maria or Monica he was dealing with. Everything seemed so familiar and yet completely different.

He felt her near him and wrap her arms around his waist while trying to ease his mind. Altair shook his head slightly, in the darkness of the room even she missed the motion, she had no idea what he was dealing with or how to fix it.

"Please, Altair," she begged feeling him tense up, "forget whatever troubles you."

Maria rose to her tiptoes and captured his lips shyly; she could still taste the wine that he had been drinking minutes before. The reaction that she got from him, however, took her by surprise.

He growled before returning the kiss viciously, he wrapped one arm around her waist and spun her around. He pinned her to the wall making her break away from him and gasp out in surprise and shock, he had never done anything like that.

Altair pulled back upon seeing the dazed look on Maria's face, she leaned forward eagerly towards him before he held her jaw with his hand. His golden eyes burned into her own lustful pair, his own gaze bearing nothing but despair and regret.

"How can I forget," he whispered into her ear as she shivered against him and tried to meet his lips with her own, "when you remind me of _her?"_

Maria froze instantly, Altair didn't make a move to pull back, she wondered if she had heard him correctly. Of course not, she must have heard wrong. She could feel all of the pleasure from before fading away when his words replayed in her mind.

"What?" she asked pulling her head back and pressing herself up against the wall to get a better look at the imposing assassin before her. Altair merely stared at the wall in front of him with an expressionless face.

"I will not repeat myself," he told her as he walked away from her and straightened his robes in irritation, "you heard correctly the first time."

Maria's eyes dilated in horror upon hearing the words come out of his lips. She shook her head in denial as she watched him step over the shattered bottle of wine on the ground.

Now it made sense to her.

"Altair, the wine must be affecting you, how many glasses have you-" she started before he turned to look at her with a warning glance.

"The wine has no effect on me," he snapped clearly irritated pulling off one of his gloves with his teeth. Maria grimaced when she saw the numerous cuts that the glass had left behind, how could she miss something like that? She moved forward to help him before she remembered why he had broken the glass in the first place.

Her mind went blank as she looked at the man she loved dearly; she couldn't comprehend what he had just told her. How could there be another when she had been the only one to stand by his side for over six years?

"Altair, please tell me it is all a cruel joke," she told him pleadingly looking at his back once more. He didn't even turn to look at her like she had expected, he didn't laugh and admit that it had all been a lie to see how she reacted. Instead she got another remark that made her heart ache in agony.

"I would never lie," Altair replied with a cold tone to his voice, "you of all people should know this by now."

Maria stepped back, she could feel herself slowly loosing grasp of the reality around her. All of her submissive behavior and quiet manner of conducting herself started to wither away and die within her. The innocent look in her eyes was clouded over with a thin red veil; she could feel her hand shake beside her.

"Who was she?" Maria demanded, her tone dangerously low catching Altair's attention. This was a new side to the woman he had gotten to know over the years. She stormed over to his side and looked at him demandingly.

Altair didn't even flinch.

"I answer to no one," the Arab replied holding his head high with his, "much less a woman," he snarled sneering clearly unamused at her defiance. She was forgetting her place and who she was talking to.

"All those years, you never told me!" Maria exclaimed realizing the true meaning behind his confession from a few moments ago, "Was I nothing to you but her shadow?" she asked standing in front of Altair.

"You were never a shadow," he answered calmly. It was true; he had belonged to her and her alone for a while. Despite his own mind trying to persuade him otherwise he knew he still felt something for Maria, although it wasn't as strong as before.

"Then what am I to you? A puppet to toss around and get rid of when it ceases to amuse you?" she asked tossing the pillows on the bed at him. "Am I not enough to erase her memory?" she asked while Stiglitz's ears flew back and rested against his head as the feline felt the pillow beneath him being pulled.

The cat crashed down onto the ground with a hiss before a pillow landed on top of it followed by several more. Altair failed to see the cat covered by the mass of pillows that Maria had thrown at him as she started to kick them aside angrily.

A piercing screech reached their ears as Maria felt her foot connect with something heavier than the pillows she had been kicking mercilessly. Stiglitz meowed pitifully when the feline's body connected with the harsh wall that he had been kicked towards.

Maria felt her face pale when she noticed the black cat struggle to stand, its hind legs gave out beneath it as it meowed endlessly at Altair. She watched as the cat pawed at the air towards the assassin next to her in pain as it tried to stand but toppled over again.

Altair's body snapped towards her in an instant, she backed away hurriedly when she noticed the cat remain on the ground refusing to move. The assassin's piercing gaze landed on her while Maria shook her head weakly and tried to explain.

"Altair…I did not know," she choked backing away from him; she tripped and landed on her back in her desperate attempt to get away from him. Altair merely walked up to her trying to control all of the rage that was practically ready to erupt within him when his eyes landed on the oriental cat once more.

"If anything is wrong with that cat, you shall pay _dearly," _he hissed at her before the door to his quarters opened suddenly. His golden eyes met with Ezio's own chocolate orbs, the Italian stared back in confusion at the scene before him.

Maria picked herself up weakly before dusting the dress she had on; she walked hurriedly over to the cat that refused to move from its spot on the ground. Altair stared at her critically watching her every move when she picked the feline up carefully and cradled it in her arms.

"I'll take him to a doctor," she told Altair, the Arab refused to look at her. She looked down at the suffering cat in her arms and understood why he didn't even want to look at her. "I am sorry, _habibi." _

Altair turned to look at her upon hearing the endearment, despite everything that he had just told her she still found it in herself to forgive him. Of course she did, she didn't know the whole story. Maria didn't know that Monica was still alive, nor could she ever find out.

Altair found himself nodding at the woman beside him before she rushed out of the room with the meowing feline in her arms. He sighed once she left and rubbed the bridge of his nose while Ezio closed the door behind her.

"What was that all about, old man?" the Italian asked glancing around noticing the pillows on the ground and the shattered glass. He stepped back when he saw the blood red wine spilled on the ground beneath his boots.

"She knows," Altair replied turning away from him. Ezio's mouth dropped open in shock, he knew she was bound to find out now that the pair of women were back but he hadn't expected it so soon.

"And she forgave you? You are one lucky bastardo, amico mio," Ezio laughed before Altair's apparent frown cut it shot.

"She thinks it happened years ago, she assumed that I confused her with a woman from my past, she still believes that I love her," the Arab commented making Ezio face palm in apparent disapproval. Maria knew there had been someone else but she had been led to believe that it had all been left behind. She still believed she was the only woman in Altair's world.

"This will come back to haunt you," Ezio warned the man before him. Altair turned to look at the assassin in front of him with a mocking grin of his own.

"Maria knows some truth," he told the Italian tilting his head at the man when he clearly missed the meaning; "Anna knows nothing."

Ezio's own face paled at the statement, he Arab before him had a point. His mind reminded him that he hadn't come up to converse with the grandmaster of their past mistakes.

"I will deal with it when the time comes," the Italian replied shaking it off with a flick of his wrist. Altair resisted the urge to laugh at him; he was digging his own grave by refusing to tell Anna. "There is a reason to my unexpected visit, we have been called to Persia," Ezio told the Arab catching his attention.

"Why?" Altair asked already eager to leave. Ezio knew the feeling too well, he knew that the chances of running into the pair of Diamond Dogs in Persia were slim. Still, he couldn't help but hope that their paths would cross once more.

"Double contract," the Italian replied throwing the papers down onto the wooden table in front of the grandmaster. Altair's hand reached for the the two sheets of paper before he pulled it back suddenly as if the paper had been on fire.

"Have you seen who the targets are?" Altair asked reading the names over and over in his head refusing to believe his eyes.

Ezio stared back with a confident look in his eyes, "how could the names of my two favorite Diamond Dogs slip my mind?" he replied taking the papers back. He was aware that the contract requested the death of Annalise and Monica. It requested that they take down the leaders of the infamous Dogs; it held no other details or specifications.

"There is something strange about these contracts," Altair commented taking them from Ezio when the Italian held them out to him.

"It is the same person who hired the Dogs to kill Maria," Ezio pointed out as Altair nodded and furrowed his brow in deep thought, "they call him the Spaniard."

"He's hired us to clash with the Dogs," Altair thought out loud, "just like he hired the Dogs to confront us," he added seeing the connection.

"He wants us to kill each other," Ezio commented as Altair nodded, It was clear to him now, "he wants the blood to be on our hands to make it look like a mere confrontation between the Creed and the Dogs."

Altair didn't even want to picture the scene of the two creeds crossing paths in war, there would certainly be lives lost on both sides. He did not want to lose any more men to the Dogs, he had already lost enough.

"Do not let Maria out of your sight, she is not safe with anyone but you," Ezio warned the Arab as he nodded grimly. "Anna will be coming here for a while, I will not have her kidnapped and used against me." The grandmaster understood Ezio's reasoning all too well, if the so called 'Spaniard' was out destroy their creed he would go for the people closest to them first.

Altair turned to look at the man beside him before realizing the whole reason for his visit.

"I suppose you will want to travel to Persia to warn the Dogs about this?" he asked tossing the papers on top of the table before him. Ezio smiled back at him before replying.

"Exactly," he replied taking the contracts, "make amends with Maria, she will be coming with."

Altair stared up at him with a small frown on his lips, having Maria and Anna travel along with them to Persia was a bad idea. He could only pray that they didn't cross paths with Monica and Annalise.

"Very well," Altair replied as Ezio resisted the urge to grin from ear to ear. It disappeared as soon as it came when he heard Altair's next comment and realized the problems it would lead to if it happened. "Pray that Anna and Maria do not run into the leaders of the Diamond Dogs."

Ezio frowned before turning away without replying and heading towards the door trying to figure out what he would do if Anna and Annalise crossed paths, he shook the thought off.

Perhaps this had been a bad idea after all, he saw no other way though, the Dogs had to be warned before more innocent blood was shed.

A feeling settled over him as he descended the stairs, all of their lies would catch up to them in Persia.

He shook his head grimly; he was dreading the trip already.

**Review!**


	12. Dance With Me

**Dance With Me**

**A/N: Well, I'm too tired to write back to you guys (its like 3AM over here -_-! I promise I'll do it for the next chapter though!Enjoy!**

The blazing sun bore down on the assassins as they made their way through the desert. Ezio leaned forward and rested his body up against the neck of his horse. His heavy breathing reached Altair's ears, the older assassin turned to look at the Italian in concern.

While the sun didn't bother him as much he couldn't say that he wasn't affected by it. His light breathing could only be heard by the steed he rode upon. They had a long way to go and they were barely halfway through the burning sand dunes.

The Arab turned to look at Maria and Anna who rode at the back along with Karim and Hadar before he choked back a laugh. Hadar was being pulled along by his cream colored horse, his foot hooked into the saddle while his body was dragged against the harsh sand.

Altair whistled at Ezio before he pulled on the reins to his horse and stopped it. He dismounted and headed over towards Karim who was trying to unhook Hadar's foot from the saddle with desperation.

"Idiota," Ezio commented shaking his head while motioning for Karim to step aside. The Italian moved forward and let the other's foot slip through the metal stirrup. Hadar merely groaned and rolled over until he was lying face down on the sand.

"This is unbearable, Ezio," Anna whined wiping the sweat from her forehead in disgust. Her blond hair had lost is shine and beauty long ago, it was now bound into a messy bun behind her. She too dismounted her horse followed by Maria whose chest heaved trying to get more air into her lungs.

Altair merely remained silent while he looked around ignoring the looks he was getting from Maria. She stared at him questioningly, ever since the two women had escaped from the creed back in Venice he hadn't been the same.

Landa and Stiglitz jumped out from the saddle bags that were placed on his horse before looking around with their tails swishing wildly. Much to Maria's relief the black cat hadn't been injured when she had kicked it, she couldn't begin to think of what Altair would have done to her if it had been hurt.

Ezio stumbled over to his horse and supported his weight on the saddle weakly; he could feel his head spinning uncontrollably. The heat was getting to him, what next, would he start to hallucinate as well? As soon as the thought ran through his mind he fell backwards startling Karim who had been standing behind him.

The young assassin managed to catch the Italian who was clearly unconscious before Anna ran to his side. Altair stopped her before she could reach him, however, and held her in place with a steel grip.

"Do not run," he warned her in a low voice. She stared up in fear at the imposing assassin in front of her before his voice startled her and made her pay attention, "unless you would like to end up like Ezio," he added before letting her go. She nodded in understanding before walking hurriedly over to the Italian.

Clearly the heat was getting to them all; they had to find a way to avoid the sun. Altair ran his tongue over his bottom lip in slight desperation when he felt his own body betraying him. He shook his head in a desperate attempt to get some control over himself; he couldn't let the desert take him down as well.

"Altair, we need to rest," Karim informed the grand master. Altair resisted the urge to scoff; of course they did he was no fool. He hadn't been planning on losing Hadar and Ezio though, that was certainly something he hadn't expected. The Arab tilted his head trying to get a feel of the muscles in his neck before rolling his shoulders in irritation.

He mounted his horse and stood on the saddle trying to get a better view of the endless sea of sand around him. A formation of rock mountains in the distance gave him hope, perhaps if they could reach them there would be a cave for them to rest in while the heat died down.

The horse beneath him remained still as the Arab balanced on top of it for a few more seconds pondering his options. He jumped down as soon as his mind was set, he couldn't risk Ezio or Hadar dying because of his carelessness.

Anna eyed the grandmaster wearily as she held Ezio's head in her lap while she tried to cool him down with her fan. Maria on the other hand fainted when a black scorpion burrowed out of the sand in front of her. Karim sighed and kicked it out of the way before pulling her away from it and placing her beside Hadar.

"We have to get out of the sun," Altair told the pair while he motioned for Karim to help him. With the other assassin assisting him he heaved Ezio up and placed him over his horse. The pair soon put Maria and Hadar sideways onto their saddles before mounting their own horses.

The grandmaster didn't panic when he had seen them all go down one by one; it was common when traveling across the desert. A few hours of rest and water was all they needed before they were up and running once more.

The small group made their way through the never-ending desert for a while before they reached the cream colored formations of rock that had caught Altair's attention. Much to his relief they seemed to cross over each other providing shade beneath the sharp arches that led in deeper into the caves.

Anna dismounted and helped the two assassins with the three unconscious bodies before she allowed herself to slide down the smooth rock wall. Her body sat down and sighed in exhaustion before she noticed Karim taking the top part of his robes off. Her mouth dropped open upon seeing Altair do the same, the fact that they could do that and she couldn't infuriated her.

The pair stood guard at the entrance without so much as a glance back at her, their discarded white shirts a few feet away made her sigh in frustration. She bit her bottom lip when she noticed the hot breeze dance around the assassins, she would give anything to be them and discard her clothes just like they had been able to.

Even as the sun started to set she still found herself exchanging the fan between herself and the three who were still unconscious beside her. Altair was nowhere to be seen and Karim had gone out to search the area, the fact that it was starting to get dark and neither had reappeared worried Anna.

Ezio's body stirred on her right side before she saw Hadar sit up and groan while holding his head. She breathed a sigh of relief when both assassins were up and looking around. At least they would be there in case something went wrong and she needed someone to back her up, she didn't need them to protect her. Her profession had taught her the importance of self-defense; she knew the basics, or at least enough to hold attackers off while help came.

Maria soon opened her eyes as well and sat up with a soft whine upon feeling her sore muscles. She looked around and noticed two of the men were missing from the group. Her frown increased when she noticed Altair was one of them.

She got up and pulled her hair back before walking out of the cave trying to tie it with a black ribbon. Her eyes traveled up to the star filled sky while her fingers tried to gather the loose strands before she tied them. A cool blade slid over her throat making her gasp in horror and drop her hands instantly letting her hair back down.

"I could have killed you if I was anyone else," Altair's voice scolded before the blade was dropped from her neck. She sighed and turned to look at him while he stored the knife back into its sheath. It was only then that she noticed he was wearing nothing from the waist up. A deep blush settled onto her cheeks despite the blazing stare that Altair was giving her.

"I'm sorry," she whispered back dropping her head slightly. Altair made no move to comfort her like before, he merely tilted his head upwards to look at the sky as well. He sighed when he realized Maria would never learn, she was too careless. If he had been an intruder he wouldn't have had a hard time with killing her silently, she was an easy target.

"We have a long day tomorrow, rest," the Arab ordered turning away from her. Maria stared at his back with regret, she knew he was mad at her, there had to be something that she could to relieve him of his rage. She stepped forward and wrapped her arms around his waist while she hugged him from behind. Altair's body tensed upon feeling her touch, she could see his muscles ripple beneath the moonlight when he turned to look at her instantly.

"Just one night, Altair," she whispered to him running her hands over his abdomen eagerly. Altair closed his eyes and growled warningly at her, it didn't seem to faze her. He stopped her hands with his own before she could go any further and turned to look at her. It didn't seem right to him, not when he had another person in his mind.

"Rest," he repeated into her ear in a low tone that sent shivers down her back. Before she could say or do anything else Altair moved away from her and disappeared into the shadows of the rocks around her once more. Maria sighed knowing he would be gone for the remainder of the night before fixing her hair with the ribbon and heading inside once more.

Anna stared at her in concern when she watched the other woman sigh in frustration and sit down against the wall. Her attention was brought back to the man beside her when he removed his shirt with irritation and threw it as far as he possibly could.

Ezio sighed and rested his back against the harsh wall before motioning over for Anna. She obeyed without hesitation and curled up next to him longing for warmth as the night chilled the air around them. The Italian, however, was thinking about other things.

He ran his fingers over his lips lightly upon remembering Annalise. How could he go back to Anna and act as if nothing had happened, as if nothing had changed? He looked away before his own expression betrayed him.

Anna draped one of her own arms over his chest and shifted against him trying to get comfortable unaware of the Italian's predicament. He pulled her closer out of habit and rested his head over her own when she finally settled down.

Karim managed to catch Ezio's attention when the younger man shook his head; even he knew what was bothering his mentor. The Italian threw him a pointed look upon seeing Anna look at Karim with curiosity. The other assassin merely nodded in understanding before pushing himself off of the wall and walking outside to join Altair.

Ezio breathed out slowly before closing his eyes. He felt Anna's lips against his own for a brief moment which made him open his eyes to look at her. She smiled back before she leaned in once more and placed a gentle kiss on his cheek.

"Good night, amore," she whispered into his ear before she pulled back and rested her head against his chest. Ezio found his throat constricted upon hearing her, he couldn't even answer back. He clenched his jaw in frustration and looked away once more unable to bear the guilt in his mind.

He drifted off into a restless sleep followed by the rest who still remained in the cave.

The night proved uneventful with the occasional traveler merely passing by with a herd of sheep or cattle. By the time dawn had come they were all awake and ready to travel once more.

They rode for the rest of the day stopping occasionally to stretch, eat, and water the horses. It wasn't until nightfall that they neared the city where they had been traveling to the whole time. They hitched the horses outside of the walls where the creed would retrieve them later on.

As soon as they walked in, however, they were greeted with shouts and cheers from the crowded streets. Altair stared at the scene completely dumbfounded; there was no reason to be celebrating as far as he knew.

Drunkards stumbled across the group with cups of wine in their hands while acrobats and other performers jumped into their path from every angle. The small group made their way through the masses before a nearby crowd caught their attention.

A young woman stood in the center competing with a trumpeter with her voice. The higher the man went the higher she followed with her own tone. Maria stopped and scoffed at the scene followed by Anna who stared at the woman beside her. Both of them knew Maria could easily out sing both the man and the young opera singer.

Altair stopped as well followed by Ezio once the pair noticed the interest that the women had taken to the spectacle before them.

"Give it a try," Anna encouraged Maria knowing she could easily put both of the performers to shame. Maria turned to look at Altair for permission, the grandmaster merely nodded knowing they all needed to relax after the long trip they had just made.

Maria stepped forward and started to sing over the young opera singer while half of the crowd turned and gasped upon hearing her voice. Before she knew it she was knocking down singer after singer that stood in her way, her voice was better and she knew it. She had even gotten Anna to dance for her whenever the occasion called for it and a pair challenged her.

The crowd started to favor Anna and Maria even more after they took down what seemed to be the last of the pairs that had challenged them. A hush fell over them instantly when a mocking laugh reached their ears. Every head shot over to the source, a pair of harlequins stood side by side, their heads tilted in amusement at the pair in the center.

"I was called…for this?" one of them laughed stepping forward. The other followed with a light cackle as the crowd parted like the Red sea for them. Altair's face paled when he recognized the tone of the voice. Ezio merely stared at the other clown in shock when he heard the unique laughter, he knew it all too well by now.

"Who are you?" Maria asked standing beside Anna. The pair of harlequins turned to look at each other before shaking their heads.

"It doesn't matter, we just came to bury you," one of them replied as Ezio realized it was Annalise. The one beside her merely circled Maria with a predatory stance, Altair knew it was Monica by now.

"Bury us? I highly doubt it," Anna commented looking at the clown before her defensively. Annalise merely rose her head and looked down on the woman before her, she wasn't even worth her time. She wasn't about to back down from a challenge though, not when it was in her territory.

"We'll see about that," Annalise replied turning to look at Monica who had stopped behind Maria. Altair tensed not knowing if the pair recognized each other, if they did he would put it past Monica to try and kill Maria.

He stepped forward when Monica rose her hand above Maria's head, he felt Ezio hold him back when the woman he knew merely snapped her fingers. Amongst the crowd a violinist started to scratch a tune, Annalise turned sharply to look at Monica when she noticed what she was about to do.

"We have a dance," Monica started moving away from Maria while the other woman sighed in relief. Having the harlequin behind her seemed to unnerve her for some reason, Altair merely stared at them with concern regretting letting Maria sing.

Annalise moved as well knowing the song all too well, she dragged one of her feet behind her before bringing it back and kicking the tip of it up against the dirt floor. Ezio smiled slightly, so they were doing a tango. He watched with interest while the violin continued to play the tune.

"It tells the story of a prostitute," Monica continued turning away from Anna and Maria. The crowd around her laughed and cheered before she continued. "And the man who falls in love…with her," she added turning to look at Annalise as well. Ezio's own face paled upon hearing what Monica had just said.

He turned sharply to look at Altair while the grandmaster shook his head. There was no way she knew about Anna, it was merely a coincidence. The look that the harlequin threw at Anna, however, was making them both have their doubts.

"First there is desire," Monica continued twirling Annalise around. She made sure to hold her when Annalise allowed her body to drop back and dip downwards. Monica pulled her back up and allowed her to dance around for a brief moment.

Anna and Maria stared curiously at the pair, they were good dancers, they had that much going for them. Anna, however, was having a bad feeling about the song. It seemed too familiar for her; she turned to look at Ezio slightly with worry. The assassin shook his head and reassured her with a slight nod of his head.

"Then passion," Monica added twirling Annalise around before the blond hugged her friend, the smile beneath her mask couldn't have been wider. They were just getting started, they would make sure to crush the pair watching a few feet away.

"Then suspicion!" Monica barked when Annalise rose her hand and called over a man in the audience with it behind her partners back. The brunette pulled away harshly and held Annalise's wrist in her grasp harshly while shaking it in accusation.

Altair tensed upon watching the dynamic between the two, they made it believable, he had no doubt that Annalise was in pain with the force Monica had used to hold her in place.

"Jealously, anger, betrayal!" Monica snarled walking forward forcing Annalise to take sharp steps backwards. The crowd had hushed by now and paid full attention to the pair who continued to perform for them. The brunette increased the pressure on her friend's wrist making Annalise cringe and struggle against her, Monica had to give it to her, she was a superb actress.

"Where love is for the highest bidder, there can be no trust," the brunette added stepping sideways while Annalise followed her lead. "Without trust there is no love!" Monica hissed shaking the blond in her grip. Altair felt a sharp pain in his chest upon hearing her, he turned and noticed Ezio was looking down with guilty look on his face. They were taking it too far; there was no way this hadn't been planned. The lyrics were too accusing and true to have been improvised.

The violin cried in the background while the pair circled each other locked still in the steel grip that Monica held Annalise in.

"Jealousy! Yes, jealousy," Monica shouted shaking Annalise even more, "will drive you…mad!" she continued before releasing Annalise into the arms of a man who had been standing behind her. Annalise turned recognizing the man by now and fell into his arms while he stepped forward and held her waist knowing the routine by now.

She found it convenient that members of her creed were amongst the crowd or else she would have no one to dance with. The Dogs were known for their theatrics, whether it involved killing or merely entertaining themselves. The song they were currently doing had been done before for their own amusement, everyone in their creed knew it by now and the story behind it.

"_Roxanne!_" Monica sang turning to look at Annalise removing her mask when it interfered with her singing. Anna's face paled when she heard the name. She turned to look at Ezio with tears in her eyes upon hearing it. The Italian stared back hopelessly, he had no idea what was going on.

Anna held back the urge to cry, that was her name. She had adopted the name of 'Anna' when she had started to work the streets at night. It was mandatory to never use your true name when you worked in her profession. The horror that came with listening to her name in a song like that was indescribable. She couldn't believe a mere harlequin was able to guess it like that; it had to be more than coincidence.

"_You don't have to put on that red light," _Monica continued as Annalise danced with the same man from before. She leaned forward and caressed his face with her hand while he ran his own down her back; she rose her leg up beside him while he dipped her back and leaned forward.

"_Walk the streets for money, you don't care if it is wrong or if it is right," _Monica continued letting her Spanish accent through while another man stepped forward. Annalise turned from her previous dancing partner when she felt his hands on her shoulders. She turned and allowed him to carry her away from the one she had been dancing with. The blond turned her back against the man she knew as well and rested her hands on his arms which remained wrapped around her waist.

"_Roxanne!" _Monica called once more turning to look at Annalise with despair upon seeing her with another, acting as her lover. The crowd by this time had started to get the picture and watched with interest wondering what was going to happen next. "_You don't have to wear that dress tonight."_

Ezio paled as he watched the pair act out the song, the words that were being sung had all been said by him at one point or another to Anna. He shook his head as his eyes landed on her; she stared at the pair who were acting around her with horror. They were getting everything right, down to the last detail. The moves that Annalise did in the tango were enough to put her to shame.

"_Roxanne!" _the brunette sang reaching for Annalise when she danced right past her into the arms of another man. "_You don't have to sell your body to the night." _

Annalise fell into the arms of another man as he rose her up into the air before lowering her and pulling her closer to him. She relaxed into his hold knowing him by now upon having practiced the song time and time again with him. He leaned forward and dipped her downwards once more before pretending to kiss her neck.

"_Her eyes upon your face, her hand upon your hand, her lips caress your skin," _Annalise sang placing her hand on the man's neck as he pulled her to him once more and grabbed her waist. "_It's more than I can stand!" _she added thinking of the Italian she had left behind days ago.

The pair who stood watching them felt their mouths drop open in shock upon hearing her voice. There was no way they were going to win against them.

Monica stared at Maria and Anna completely unaware of who they were as she shook her head and continued to circle around Annalise and her dancing partners with obvious pain in her expression.

"_Roxanne!" _Monica sang as Annalise fell into the arms of yet another man. The crowd by now was nodding in approval at the love story that was going on and some were already cheering them on.

"_Why does my heart cry?" _Annalise sang as she spun around and was handed off to another man. She could feel her heart ache every time she thought of the assassin she had denied.

"_Roxanne_!" Monica cried reaching for her when she fell back against one of the men she had been dancing with. Altair had to hold Ezio in place when he saw the Italian sway in his spot. Anna cringed when she heard her name once more and stepped back shaking her head. She found herself freezing in place; she wanted to know how it ended. Why they had sung it in the first place, there had to be a reason behind it.

"_Feelings I can't fight," _Annalise added dragging her leg once more and tapping the ground beneath her with the tip of her boot. She leaned forward and dropped her head against her partner's chest in order to look away from Monica when her partner reached out for her. "_You're free to leave me but just don't deceive me and please believe me when I say…I love you." _

The crowd grew silent once more when the violin cried with short notes, Annalise froze along with her partners while Monica moved around them slowly. The brunette's eyes turned dark when she noticed all of the men around Annalise, the violin went higher and higher. The crowd held their breaths waiting for what was coming next.

"_Roxanne!" _Monica shouted holding out both of her hands with a look of utter agony in her face, "_You don't have put on that red light!" _

"_Why does my heart cry?" _Annalise sang, their voices overlapping as she danced with one partner before he handed her off to the next.

"_Roxanne!" _Monica called looking at Annalise intently, "_you don't have to wear that dress tonight!" _

Anna closed her eyes and placed her hands over her ears in a desperate attempt to block out the duo that the pair was performing. Ezio turned away ready to leave and retrieve Anna before Altair stopped him, he too had a feeling that the song had a point to it.

"_Feelings I can't fight!" _Annalise sang desperately as the violin started to play faster and faster. She prepared herself for what was coming as the men started to form a circle around the pair, close enough to give the effect but still allowing the crowd to see what was going on.

"_Roxanne!" _Monica yelled in accusation as Annalise found herself being tossed harshly from man to man. The brunette followed her partner with betrayal apparent in her eyes; the crowd hushed once more some already knowing what was coming.

Ezio couldn't tear his eyes away from the scene while Altair merely held his breath dreading what the message had been all along. Maria stared at them with awe next to Anna who looked at the scene with terror in her eyes.

The violinist made the notes sound shrill as Annalise was shoved towards Monica by each man that caught her and pushed her into the next pair of waiting arms.

"_Roxanne!" _the brunette called one final time before Annalise fell into her arms. The mass of people around them hushed and every eye landed on them as Annalise relaxed for a brief moment thinking that the ordeal was over acting relieved that her lover had forgiven her for every man she had 'slept' with.

Monica smiled coldly before she dropped it menacingly and spun her around before gripping the sides of her head and turning it with force. Annalise feigned panic before she snapped her head to the side in time with her partner's motion. She collapsed on the ground with a dull thud before the roar of approval erupted form the crowd around them.

Ezio stood beside Altair before fear started to creep into him. So that had been their point all along, he now understood. If Anna continued to sell herself she would end up dead, Ezio knew it would never be by his hand but she would lose her life nonetheless.

Altair nodded in understanding at last before he saw Anna rushing over to Ezio amongst the crowd. She gripped onto him and hugged him as if her life depended on it before her sobs reached the Italian's ears. Maria ran over to Altair as well and held on to his waist in fear; she had a bad feeling about what she had just seen.

"I don't want to end up like that, Ezio" Anna cried with horror. The Italian looked down at her and tried to reassure her with his hold while he stroked her blond hair. "I don't want that to happen," she added as he sighed and looked up to find Annalise and Monica gone.

The crowd around them still clapped and shouted in approval at the little play they had just seen. Altair merely led Maria away from them after making sure Ezio followed after them. They walked through the streets with their respective partners close by before they reached the doors to the creed in the city.

Anna rushed inside with Maria holding her reassuringly leaving Ezio and Altair outside to think about their next move.

"They knew!" Ezio shouted in anger feeling his blood boil before he heard Altair laugh beside him.

"They did not," the Arab replied calmly. Ezio's eyes shot over to look at him in demand.

"Explain it then!" the Italian thundered using his hand for emphasis as he pointed at the streets behind Altair. The Arab remained calm despite the other losing his control for a brief moment.

"They would have attempted something," Altair replied making Ezio stop suddenly. The older assassin had a point. If the pair of Dogs had recognized Maria and Anna a fight would have certainly broken out in mid plaza.

"What about the song?" Ezio asked quietly holding his head trying to understand everything that had happened. He saw Altair step around him and head into the creed as well before the grandmaster said something that made his blood run cold.

"Perhaps it is a bad omen, I would not ignore it if I was you, keep a close eye on Anna...we will meet with the Dogs in the morning."

**Review!**


	13. Over You

**Over You**

**A/N: Well, the other day I got a review for this and I reailzed I havent update it in like forever so I went into a panic attack XD I think it shows in my writing, its not my best chapter so bare with me for this one my dears. Anyway, sidenotes to some of you guys: **

**Aurum-Animi: You my dear are amazing, you're the only one who knew where the songs were! Therefore I decided to write a chapter in your honor XD Im serious though, let me know what you would like to happen and I'll try my hardest to put in in becuase I was seriously impressed that you managed to figure the songs out :DDD**

**Random Person 94: You have a good point, he wont protect her forever :D**

**Jenbuscus: Everyone wants to get rid of Maria and Anna XD the poor dears **

**selen: they'll start to realize it sooner or later ;D**

**miruka67: Foreshadowing my dear, foreshadowing ;D**

**VampireVampyre: Well I was watching Moulin Rouge and it came to me when I watched them perform the scene XD**

**DanAlaya: It was a prelude, my dear. Im already looking forward to writing it XD**

"Delicious," Monica hummed with content as she looked down at the streets from her balcony. Annalise followed her partner's gaze and rolled her eyes when they landed on a group of patrolling soldiers.

"You've got a thing for the captain, don't you?" the blond asked elbowing her friends suggestively. Monica scowled back at her before she hit the blond over the back of her head.

"Not my fault you prefer the lieutenant," Monica snapped back as she continued to look at the group of soldiers beneath them. Annalise's face reddened upon hearing her friend before she turned away from her partner with a huff and looked at the soldiers as well.

"Perhaps moving to Persia wasn't such a bad idea, hmm?" Monica asked looking at the lit city around them. It was beautiful but at the moment she didn't have any time to really enjoy the view, she had other things to worry about.

"Not bad at all," Annalise purred looking at the man below completely missing the question her partner had just said.

Monica smiled wickedly to herself when she noticed Annalise's distracted form beside her. Before the blond could stop her she turned towards the group of soldiers and whistled loudly before ducking into her room once more.

Annalise found her body freezing up on her when the group of five turned to look at her, she looked sideways only to find Monica gone.

"I hate you," Annalise snapped turning away when the group finally started to move away. Monica reappeared beside her laughing uncontrollably. The blond swung at her friend and managed to hit her shoulder, it only seemed to make the brunette laugh harder.

"Why don't you come down, _amor?" _a voice called silencing the pair of Dogs in the balcony. Monica poked her head over the balcony only to discover none other than the captain himself looking up at her with a grin.

"I've had a long day, I'm tired of killing your soldiers," Monica replied as the man shook his head and laughed lightly. Annalise smirked knowing the man by now before she turned her attention elsewhere.

"I know what you do for a living, _mi vida," _he replied shrugging her comment off. They had already run into each other on several occasions usually with the bodies of his men lying dead at her feet. She knew the captain by now and he knew everything about her as well.

"Then why are you still here, _tesoro?" _Monica asked mockingly using Spanish to get back at him. The captain rose a brow upon hearing her before one of his soldiers shouted for him in the distance. A frown appeared on his face as he sighed and turned to look at her.

"It appears your wish came true, I must go," he commented not wanting to leave. Monica frowned as well cursing the man for calling him away; she barely had a chance to talk to him. "_Adios, hermosa." _

The brunette looked at him sadly when he turned sharply and rushed over to where he had been called. A sigh escaped Monica's lips; she turned away from him and directed her gaze to the stars above her.

Annalise on the other hand shook her head when she noticed the brief encounter that her partner had just had with the captain. She sighed in discontent before another voice called her attention.

"Why are you sad, my love?" the lieutenant asked making Annalise smile at him, her frown disappearing instantly. She couldn't explain why the man beneath her always found a way to make her laugh, she wasn't about to complain either.

She had barely known him for a month and already he had saved her from going to prison on more than one occasion. Annalise on the other hand had spared his life by controlling her Dogs when they were out hunting with her.

"Because you two are always away doing something else," she replied as the young soldier nodded in understanding. While she hadn't quite gotten over Ezio just yet, the pain was seemed to decrease whenever she was around the man before her.

She heard him curse as he too was called, the matter that they had to take care of had to be important it if required both of them there.

He turned to look at her with an apologetic look before another shout reached his ears. He turned and headed off in the same direction leaving Annalise alone once more. She turned to look at Monica who had her eyes closed while she leaned up against a wall.

"Is this wrong?" she asked her friend as Monica's eyes remained shut.

"He has another, you aren't bound to him," the brunette's calm voice replied as Annalise nodded. Despite her partner's reassuring words she found it hard to shake the feeling of guilt that loomed over her. Monica on the other hand was trying to move on, she knew Altair had Maria, she saw it useless to cling to his memory when he would never be hers. The captain was merely a temporary distraction, they both knew that, she wouldn't get close to him and he wouldn't allow himself to feel anything towards her.

Things simply didn't play out like that and they were both content with that fact.

She had to start over; her mind however kept telling her that it was all wrong, that she still had a chance of fixing things. The brunette snorted before her partner's voice brought her back into reality.

"I suppose your right," Annalise replied as Monica breathed out heavily and pushed herself off of the wall. Annalise had similar thoughts running through her mind, she had to get over the Italian, he was never coming back. Things would never be the same, she had to make a life for herself and leave the past behind. She knew a soldier was the last thing she should be looking at but at the moment it was the only thing she had to ease the pain from having to part with the Italian. In time she would learn to forget him, a part of her, however, refused to erase his memory. Annalise sighed knowing there was no easy way out of her predicament.

Monica, on the other hand, turned away from the balcony and headed into her room before her face connected with a hard surface. Her mind ran blank instantly knowing what it was by now; she had run into him too many times to forget the feeling of it.

She groaned calling Annalise's attention as she turned to look at her partner. The sight of the pair of assassins standing a few feet away under the cover of the night startled her briefly. How long had they been there?

"Why are you here?" Monica asked slightly panicked rubbing her nose in pain after her collision with Altair. She closed the doors to her room fearing one of her Dogs would walk in and discover the pair of men. They had probably gotten in from her other open window at the back of her room; she scolded herself for leaving it open.

"We came to warn you, nothing more," Altair replied looking around the decorated room. The pair of chains that hung on the wall caught his attention. The empty collars on the ground reminded him of the pair of hyenas his men had killed when they had kidnapped the women in front of him.

"Warn us?" Annalise asked walking into the room as well. Ezio stared at her blankly. Beneath his calm façade he was seething with jealousy, he had heard everything the soldier outside had said to her. Her reaction to the man had also pained him; then again he had no right to say anything.

"Someone has hired us to kill you, it is the same man that put out a contract for Maria and Anna," Ezio explained glancing at Monica who sat on the table a few feet away from them.

"Are you saying he's trying to get us to kill each other?" Annalise asked catching Monica's attention.

"It would seem so," Altair replied calmly.

"Did you leave Anna and Maria behind?" Annalise asked finding it strange to see the pair of assassins without the women who seemed attached to them. Ezio turned his eyes towards her upon hearing her question.

"They are back at the creed, Anna refuses to leave due to you," Ezio snapped as Monica rose from the table and turned to look at him. Annalise and Altair both tensed knowing how short tempered both of them were, anything was capable of setting them off.

"What are you implying, boy?" Monica asked warningly standing a few feet away.

"Do not play coy with me, that song you performed a few weeks ago scarred her," Ezio hissed turning to look at her as well both of them eyed each other ready to pounce at any moment. Altair and Annalise looked at each other briefly; this was going to end badly.

"That song was about a whore, " Monica snarled lowly standing her ground, "do not tell me your precious Anna is a whore."

Before any of them knew what had happened Ezio lunged at her, they stumbled back and slammed into the door that she had closed moments ago. Altair moved forward to tear them apart before the wooden door opened suddenly sending Ezio and Monica backwards.

Annalise winced when she recalled the amount of stairs that would greet the fighting pair. She reached out to prevent their fall but by then it had been too late. She rushed over to the doorway followed by Altair to see their respective partners crashing down the large staircase.

"What did I ever see in him?" she asked shaking her head in slight amusement upon seeing the pair struggle at the bottom of the stairs for dominance. The assassin beside her found himself thinking the same question when it came to the brunette who was currently punching Ezio in the face. The answer came to him sooner than he had expected.

"Everything," Altair replied before he could stop himself. Annalise glance sideways at him briefly, she didn't miss the slight frown that the assassin covered up seconds later. Before she could say anything else regarding the matter Altair left her side and started to descend the stairs to break up the scrap between the pair at the bottom.

Annalise found herself following after him calmly, she grabbed Monica and pulled her away from the Italian who fought against Altair when he too was pulled away.

"Get out before someone realizes you're here," Annalise warned them staring at her partner in slight concern. She had reopened her lip and blood gushed down her chin staining the floor beneath her. Ezio on the other hand held his broken nose in a desperate attempt to stop the blood from escaping.

Monica glared at the Italian while he sneered back at her; they knew a fight had been inevitable between them. It had been coming a long time ago, they were just glad that it had happened now and not later on when they let it escalate and get worse.

"Master, is everything alright?" a woman's voice asked through the door a few feet away from them. Monica cursed before shrugging Annalise off and walking towards it. She tried to wipe the blood from her face away with the sleeve of her black robes.

"I'm goddamn fine," she barked at the Dog who had been waiting for a reply. A pause came from the other side before another voice joined in.

"We heard some scuffling, are you sure everything is fine?" the other Dog asked as Monica turned to look at the assassins who were still there. Annalise got the picture and started to push them towards a cupboard a few feet away.

Altair found himself being shoved in followed by Ezio before the door closed behind them. The pair of assassins froze in the confined space and held their breaths when they heard the door open. This was bad, they weren't even supposed to be there, if any of the Dogs outside found them they wouldn't only be hung, Annalise and Monica would also be executed for hiding them.

"Are you satisfied?" Monica's voice growled as light steps filled the room. Ezio tensed slightly when they came close to their hiding place. Annalise caught on and stopped the Dog before she could open the wooden door.

"Get out, we were discussing future plans," she warned the woman holding her forearm in her grasp preventing her from discovering the pair of assassins within the cupboard. The Dog turned and shook her hold off before leaving followed by the rest of the women who had entered to inspect the room.

Annalise made sure to stand over the bloodstains Ezio had left behind on the floor. Monica on the other hand kept her face away from the women that were still in the room, her sleeve never left her lips for fear of having them discover the bloody skin underneath.

"If you need us, we will be outside," one of them commented before closing the door behind her.

Monica sighed in relief as Annalise opened the door and allowed the pair to exit. They stretched before turning towards the window that had a pile of hay at the bottom of it.

"Hey, I'm sorry about Anna," Monica commented making Ezio pause and turn to look at her, she knew allowing her temper to get the better of her had been wrong. The Italian found himself looking down in shame when he noticed the cut on her lip due to their little brawl.

"You were right though, I suppose we are both to blame," he replied with a slight smile, Annalise turned to look at him with concern upon realizing that Anna did sell her body. Ezio merely caressed her cheek comfortingly with a sad smile; it was too late to change anything now. It was out of his hands; there was nothing he could do. The Italian stopped himself after an image of Anna flashed through his mind; he stepped away and ran towards the window.

They had delivered their message; there was no need for them to remain there any longer. They wouldn't be leaving Persia any time soon; however, they would remain there until the issue with the Spaniard was settled.

Annalise walked over to it and looked down as he got out of the hay and blew a kiss to her before disappearing into the shadows. The blond found herself smiling stupidly at the small act; he hadn't changed despite everything that had happened.

"Do not let your guard down," Altair warned Monica walking over to her. She gasped in surprise when his thumb brushed over her bottom lip whipping away the blood that had stained it. The brunette leaned forward into his touch unable to stop herself longing for more. Altair had to bite the inside of his cheek to prevent himself from doing anything stupid before he stepped back from her.

Annalise felt the wind dance around her before Altair jumped out of the window as well. The pair of Diamond Dogs stared out of the window with confused looks upon thinking of everything that had just happened.

"On second thought, Persia was a bad idea," Monica commented running her tongue over her bottom lip before smiling to herself.

Annalise's own hand brushed over her cheek before she turned away from the window laughing at their predicament. Wherever they went trouble wasn't far behind, despite their attempts to distance themselves the assassins had somehow made their way back into their lives.

The blond smiled before answering her friend back.

"Persia isn't to blame; we have been the problem the whole time."

**Review!**


	14. Just One Shot

**Just One Shot**

**A/N: Well my dears I wrote this little filler while listening to two drunk Mexicans outside through my window. They were quite a distraction, but I digress. Just a little chapter to ease the blow of the next one because things get ugly from here on out. Enjoy!**

**DanAlaya: They created the Dogs and are the leaders :D**

**Jelly. Bean. of. Death: Well child...on the trail we blaze! Lmfao XD Anyway, I managed to figure everything out, we shall see how it plays out from here :D **

**Jenbuscus: I can see why everyone wants them dead XD Anyway, the mystery of the Spaniard shall be revealed soon enough, read on my dear. **

"This Spaniard is becoming a problem," Monica sneered. She stood near the window overlooking the city. Annalise turned to look at her friend with a fixed stare. The comment she had just made worried the blond, her partner had a point. The man seemed to have more influence than they had given him credit for.

In the past week they had been the targets of over ten hit men. The frequency at which the Spaniard hired men to kill them was alarming. He clearly wanted the Diamond Dogs out of the picture. The assassins were no better off.

Annalise kept in touch with Altair through letters that his hawk would fly back and forth in between them. Ezio was still sore about Anna and Monica was in no mood to talk to the creed. It all fell on the blond and the Arab to keep both of their factions from killing one another. They would often warn each other of their next move in an attempt to avoid crossing paths.

It was getting harder and harder to avoid one another in such a small city. Both of them knew this, it was only a matter of time until blood was shed in between their creeds.

"What do you want me to do?" Annalise snapped feeling weary. She had spent several days without rest already. The last thing she needed was another problem to make its home in her overworked mind. She felt like she was going to lose her sanity at times.

"Watch your tone," Monica replied through clenched teeth. The brunette turned sharply from the window. She reached over Annalise and grabbed the bottle of golden liquid that rested on the table in front of them. Monica ignored the maps scattered across the table and the endless contracts. She didn't want to know anything about them at the moment.

All she wanted was a moment of peace.

"This is going to drive us mad!" Annalise snarled slamming her fist up against the table. Monica watched her through the bottom of her glass as she downed the shot of tequila in her hold. The brunette set the small glass down calmly before she hissed in displeasure and spit out the liquid.

"What the hell is this?" she croaked picking the bottle up in anger. Annalise turned to look at her partner in alarm when she heard her voice laced with fury. The blond's face paled when she noticed the liquor inside of the bottle. It wasn't tequila; it had been replaced with something else.

Annalise picked the bottle up rapidly and opened it before smelling the liquid inside. She sighed in relief when she noticed it wasn't anything dangerous, it was merely vodka. The face Monica was making, however, concerned her.

"It's just vodka," Annalise informed her. The blond tried to calm her before Monica snatched the bottle out of her hands and stormed over to the door. Annalise followed closely behind, nothing good was going to come out of this.

"Do you have any idea how hard it is to get good tequila?" Monica asked storming through the halls of their creed. She paused from time to time checking the rooms for one person in particular. Annalise simply followed after her with a straight face.

"I can imagine it's extremely difficult," she answered, "impossible almost since it has to be imported." Monica snorted in reply; she wasn't going to bother in answering.

She pushed the doors to the dining room open and made her way towards one of their assassins. Annalise paused when she noticed the young Dog's apparent horror when her mentor slammed the bottle down in front of her.

Half of the Dogs in the room paused their tasks and turned to look at the pair at the end of the room. Monica took a seat across from the woman she had been searching for. Annalise merely followed suit and nodded reassuringly at the Dogs who were giving them worried glances.

"What was this doing in my study and where is my tequila?" Monica asked rather irritated, she hurled eye daggers at the assassin before her. The woman shifted in her seat uncomfortably before looking up at her mentor.

"We had to sterilize a wound, Master," she explained in a soft voice. She dropped her gaze before Monica closed her eyes and tried to calm her nerves. At least it had gone to good use. "I never replaced it with vodka, though," the Dog added while the comment went completely unnoticed by the pair sitting in front of her. Annalise resisted the urge to smile at her partner's actions. Despite her obvious temper she still cared about those around her. The fact that she had just let the incident with the tequila slide when she found out it had been used on one of their Dogs proved it.

"Do _not _let it happen again," the brunette warned the woman in front of her before rising. Annalise smiled slightly at the assassin trying to ease her nerves. She followed after Monica and managed to catch up to her in the halls once more.

"We need to take care of the matter at hand," Annalise started, reminding Monica of what they had been talking about before. The brunette sighed and nodded. As much as she wanted to put it aside, there was no way she could ignore the threat that the Spaniard posed to them.

"Shall we travel to Spain, my dear?" Monica asked laughing in a mocking manner. Annalise joined her and managed a laugh of her own. It seemed to lighten the mood for a moment; it was short lived, however.

"I've been thinking…" Annalise commented as Monica turned to look at her in amusement.

"A dangerous pass time," Monica interrupted choking back her laughter. Annalise looked at her blankly before she continued.

"I know," she joked. The blond shook her head in an attempt to get serious once more. "We can't do this alone," she admitted turning to look at her partner. Monica frowned when she heard the blond. As much as she wanted to deny it, she had a point.

The Spaniard was going to be a challenge. All of their contacts in Spain had warned them about his influence, politics and war seemed to be his specialty. That combination was dangerous; the Dogs knew that by now.

"Are you suggesting we drag the assassins into this?" Monica asked completely serious by now. Annalise looked at her partner, her eyes betrayed her, her response was evident in her expression.

"We have to," she explained rapidly when Monica scowled at her. "None of us are capable of taking him down on our own; we need each other's resources!"

"Careful what you wish for," Monica replied with hate laced into her voice. She had no intentions of contacting the Brotherhood asking for their help.

"It's only a matter of time until our creeds fall before him," Annalise argued trying to reason with her partner. As much as it pained her to admit it she knew they needed each other. She had even mentioned it to Altair in one of her reports, the response that she had received had shocked her.

Altair had realized it long before she had. Annalise had to stop herself from pointing it out to Monica, of course he had. He was more experienced when it came to those types of situations. Annalise respected and trusted him. If he said they would need to join forces then she would stand beside him and support the idea, there were no other options.

It had to be done.

"We hate each other too much, there would be blood spilt between us before we could even explain anything to our creeds," Monica murmured. Her head by this time was spinning out of control. Part of her wanted to admit that Annalise had a point, the other pointed out all of the obstacles they were going to face it they were to join forces.

"We have to try," Annalise urged.

Monica turned away from her and closed her eyes before she leaned up against the cold surface of the stone wall in front of her. She felt like she was going to be sick. Nothing was going according to plan; she had a feeling things would only get worse.

"Fine," Monica replied trusting her partner's judgment. She knew she was in no position to make any rational decision at the moment. She staggered slightly catching Annalise's attention. The blond moved forward knowing what was coming before she managed to catch Monica and prevent her fall.

"Vodka isn't your thing, is it?" she asked slightly amused as Monica groaned and dropped her head. Annalise merely shook her head and supported her partner's weight.

"There's a reason I only drink tequila," Monica replied stumbling even with Annalise's help, she felt like she was going to throw up. The blond merely rolled her eyes before she led her partner down the stairs.

"We have to leave for Spain today, we can't wait until this gets worse," Annalise explained when Monica rose her head and looked at her in a confused manner. The brunette merely ignored her partner's reasoning, at the moment all she wanted to do was sleep.

"Whatever you say, kid," Monica murmured noticing they were in the stables of their creed. Before she even knew what was happening Annalise had already set her down inside one of the traveling carriages. Monica turned away from the blond and laid face down on the small bed that had been placed inside of the caravan.

Annalise chose one of her most trusted Dogs to take the reins for her. She too entered the carriage and sat amongst the mass of pillows near the bed. The Dog driving the carriage had already been informed of what was going on and where she had to take them. Annalise dropped her head and tried to relax her tense muscles before she felt the horses being pulled to a stop.

She didn't open her eyes when the door to the caravan was opened and feather like footsteps reached her ears. She already knew who it was and at the moment she didn't feel like dealing with a certain Italian.

Annalise had already been planning for their trip to Spain. She had even managed to convince Altair to travel along with them. Part of her told her that it was merely to ease the tension between them and help when the time came to join their creeds. Another, however, kept reminding her that she had merely done it to see Ezio again.

"Pleasure to meet you," a soft voice commented catching her attention. Annalise opened her eyes only to meet Maria's interested orbs. Annalise extended her arm hesitantly and shook the other woman's hand with doubt. She couldn't quite place her feeling towards her.

"I don't recommend you go near her," Annalise warned seeing Anna eye Monica's form curiously. Altair turned his head to look at Annalise instantly. The blond found herself amused at the Arab's concern. Even after all the time that had passed he was rather pitiful at hiding his emotions whenever it involved the sleeping brunette.

"Vodka wasn't too kind on her," Annalise explained as Ezio shook his head in dismay. Personally he had always preferred wine. The Italian turned to look at Annalise and noticed her obvious attempts to ignore him. Anna's form sitting doubtfully beside his own reminded him of why she was shunning him.

The small space that they were all confined to didn't allow any of them to move without colliding with one another. Altair found himself shaking his head already; this was going to be a long trip.

They had decided to travel together in a desperate attempt at improving the chances of their creeds accepting one another. It was a small step towards improving their chances at taking down the infamous Spaniard. If their assassins saw that their leaders tolerated each other's presence then there would be no excuse for them to deny the joining of their creeds.

Anna and Maria were aware of the pair of women near them. How could they not be? Especially when they found their respective men distracted more than usual around them. Maria's brow rose in curiosity when she noticed the pair of cats wander from Altair's side. They jumped on the bed where the sleeping brunette lay and stretched before settling down beside her.

The Arab had to stop himself from sighing in frustration. At the rate they were going Anna and Maria would figure out the history they shared with the pair of women beside them.

Much to everyone's relief the driver pulled the horses over for some rest. Annalise found herself ready to leave the carriage and get some fresh air. Maria followed behind her with Anna next to her. Ezio and Altair were the last to exit and stretch in obvious pleasure. The pair of assassins looked around noticing where they had stopped for the night.

The forest around would provide the perfect cover, they wouldn't have to worry about that. Annalise had already started the fire and the horses rested a few feet away from them. Ezio sat near the fire looking at the flames with interest. Anna and Maria slept beside the fire in a desperate attempt to keep themselves warm. The cold night air around them made them shiver. Annalise merely laughed quietly at them catching Ezio's attention.

The Italian noticed the lack of warm clothing that she was wearing. Not that it alarmed him, she would have gotten used to it by now. He found himself wanting to reach out and rest next to her like he had done countless times before. His body longed for the warmth that she had brought to him every time he held her in his arms. Ezio closed his eyes and tried to control his thoughts. He couldn't think of her when he had Anna now.

His chest ached despite his attempts to block out any thoughts related to Annalise. The Italian couldn't keep denying himself. He wanted her beside him; there was no doubt in his mind about it. He wanted to run his hand through her hair like before. Ezio clenched his hand to the point of pain shooting up his arm. His mind reminded him of the feeling of her soft lips against his own. He wanted to kiss her until time no longer held any meaning and the world stopped.

The Italian had to bite his bottom lip in a desperate attempt to control himself and his thoughts. He stood abruptly catching Annalise's attention. She looked at him with concern as he passed by Altair who remained standing up against a tree. The Italian mumbled something that she couldn't quite hear to the grandmaster before disappearing into the shadows of the tress around them.

Before she could ask Altair anything Monica stumbled out of the carriage coughing into her sleeve uncontrollably. Annalise rose in an instant and rushed over to her partner followed by Altair who seemed to move quicker than her.

"What's wrong?" Annalise asked supporting Monica's body and keeping her up. The brunette couldn't even reply, cough after cough raked through her body. Altair's brow furrowed when he noticed the blood on Monica's sleeve. He took her into his arms and out of Annalise's hold in an instant. He already knew what was going on.

"Get some water," Altair ordered turning to look at the Dog that had been driving the carriage. The woman nodded before searching through the bags around her. The Arab turned to look at Annalise who stood in front of him with panic written all over her features. "It will pass, someone tried to poison her."

Annalise's face contorted into anger upon hearing what the assassin in front of her had just said. Her mind then clicked and made the connection. It had been the vodka. The memory of the woman saying she hadn't replaced the tequila with it suddenly resurfaced. Annalise wanted to slap herself for her stupidity.

"How do you know?" the blond asked as the driver handed Altair a flask of water. The assassin took it and forced Monica to drink some of it despite her thrashing and protests. He paid little attention to the blood that stained his robes when her coughing fit finally ceased.

"I have had experience with Ezio, it seems someone is always trying to poison him with wine," he replied as Annalise nodded in understanding. Altair's hold tightened around Monica protectively when he noticed her breathing grow steady once more. "She would have been dead if she had not spit it out."

Annalise made a mental note to thank the assassin who had replaced the tequila in her partner's study. If it weren't for her Monica would have probably downed the poisoned tequila without a second thought, her loathing of vodka had been the only thing that had kept her from swallowing. She would have to promote her for saving Monica's life. The reality of the situation hit her suddenly, they weren't safe anywhere.

Not even in their own quarters.

"We have to leave," Annalise commented realizing that if they weren't safe in their own creeds being in the open was suicide. Altair nodded back rising with Monica in his arms. Annalise turned away from the pair and headed off to find Ezio in order to leave.

Monica's half lidded eyes stared at the assassin who was holding her in confusion. Was she dreaming he was there or was it reality? She didn't know anymore, everything seemed so blurry. Nothing was clear and every noise sounded intensified to her.

Altair merely set her down carefully onto the bed she had been resting on before. He turned away from her despite his mind telling him to remain by her side. His body froze when he felt a hand holding his arm. The Arab turned in slight surprise only to find Monica staring at him looking weakly much to Altair's displeasure. He did not like to see her in that state.

Monica didn't care if she was dreaming and she didn't care if it was real. Hell, she really couldn't give a damn about what happened now. With whatever strength she had left she held him in place.

"Stay…just one night?" she whispered hoarsely hoping he wouldn't deny her request. Her body gave out on her before she could say anything else. Altair caught her falling arm and held her hand in his own hesitantly. This was wrong; he shouldn't feel so strongly about her. Not when Maria was sleeping outside unaware of everything.

Altair found himself sitting down on a pillow that rested beside the bed. Even from his position on the floor next to her his hand never left her own. He found himself drifting off into sleep faster than he had ever been able to before.

Ezio carried Maria in and nearly dropped her when he saw Altair completely passed out with his head resting against the edge of the bed. He thanked whatever force had kept Maria asleep. At least she would have to bare the sight of him holding Monica's hand even in his sleep.

The Italian couldn't blame him, he wasn't completely innocent either. He had already gotten carried away with Annalise before. The Italian merely set Maria down carefully making sure to avoid waking her before walking back out to retrieve Anna.

Annalise couldn't help but smile when she saw her partner's arm hanging over the side of the bed while her hand remained entwined with Altair's. The blond frowned, however, when she noticed Maria sleeping beside her.

The sight of Ezio carrying Anna's sleeping body seemed to upset her even more. She didn't comment on it, she kept silent even when the carriage started to move once more. She decided to finally break the silence around them when she couldn't stand it any longer.

"How long can we possibly hope to keep the truth from them?" Annalise asked as Ezio turned to look at her. In that brief moment they both understood what they were letting escalate in between them. If it went any further Anna and Maria were bound to find out.

The Italian replied quietly making Annalise wonder if she had heard correctly. The ominous tone Ezio had used didn't sit well with her.

"For as long as possible, I would not want to know what they are capable of if they found out the past we share."

**Review!**


	15. Dear Old Friend

**Dear Old Friend**

**A/N: It's been so long! I had no time to re-read this so pardon if there are any typos. Thank you to all of those who reviewed, you are the only reason I updated since I've had and still have severe writer's block. This isn't my best chapter so bare with me for the time being. My muse just wasnt working with me at the moment -_- Anyway, enjoy!**

Annalise watched as Monica stretched lazily on her bed. The blond rolled her eyes at her partner and glanced towards the open window. Spain was a beautiful city and she was wasting her time by remaining inside. Orange and red tints streamed in through the pearl colored curtains as a warm breeze danced through the room.

"Why are we in here when we could be out there?" Annalise asked rising from her chair. Monica followed her partner with bored eyes. The brunette was in no mood to mingle with the crowd outside; if it were up to her she would remain inside for the rest of her life.

"I have a contract in a few hours, I want to sleep," Monica replied turning away from the light that remained in her room. Annalise sighed and shook her head before exiting the room. Reasoning with Monica was useless when she had a job to do in a few hours.

The blond shut the door behind her and made her way down the hall quietly. Her mind was running with ideas on what to do once Monica got back from her contract. They could go out once the streets were cleared of people to enjoy themselves for a few hours. Before she could think of anything else she collided with Ezio while turning a corner without paying attention.

"Sorry," she apologized stepping out of his way. The Italian stared after her for a few moments as she continued to walk away. With his mind made up he ran after her knowing that he would regret the action in a couple of hours when Anna wondered where he had gone to.

"Bella, wait up!" he called after her. Annalise stopped in mid step and turned to look at him. By the expression that was on his face she could see that he was as bored as she was. There had been fewer contracts as of late ever since they had joined their creeds.

Some of their assassins were still not used to the idea of working together. They went out of their way to avoid crossing paths and when they did they restrained themselves from slaughtering each other. Annalise could only hope that tempers would cool after a couple of weeks. It had been two months and things weren't looking any better.

"What do you want, Ezio?" Annalise asked as she continued to walk with him next to her. The last thing she wanted was to spend time with him. She had made if perfectly clear that she no longer wished to be near him. Anna had begun to ask more questions after seeing them spend so much time with each other.

"Let's go out for a while," he answered, his eyes lighting up at the prospect of getting out of the creed. As tempting as his offer sounded Annalise knew that she had to refuse it. He had already made his life with Anna she didn't want to be responsible for ruining that now. The other woman had already grown weary of her and the glares that she would greet the blond with didn't sit well with her either.

"We can't and you know that," Annalise snapped. She made sure to avoid looking at him. Ezio on the other hand scoffed at her response. He could tell she was pushing him away. Laughter escaped through his lips when he noticed how bad she was at denying him.

"Come on, bella, we all need to get out of this place before we go mad," he continued as Annalise stopped walking and turned to look at him. Ezio flinched when she rammed him up against a nearby alabaster pillar with enough force to know the wind out of him.

"Monica is busy, Altair is nowhere to be found now a days, I have some papers to sort through and you have Anna to entertain," the blond reminded him. For some reason all of her excuses didn't amount to much in his mind.

"We'll get Monica after her contract," Ezio whispered into her ear upon feeling her grip lessen on his robes. Annalise stared back with and unconvinced expression on her face before she realized what Ezio had just said.

"How did you know she has a contract?" the blond asked accusingly pulling away from him when a maid entered the hallway. The last thing she wanted was for a rumor to be spread about them being together. Sensing the obvious tension in the air the maid made her way quickly down the hall and turned another corner leaving them alone once more.

"We share our information now, did that slip your mind, c_ara?" _he asked her as she frowned and stepped back.

"Don't call me that," she hissed warningly. Ezio's face remained apathetic towards her sudden outburst. He understood where she was coming from but he saw no harm in using the same endearment he had used all those years ago.

After receiving nothing but silence from her the Italian pulled back with a smile on his face. Annalise was about to question him about but stopped as soon as she heard his voice once more.

"It is settled then, I shall find the old man and go search for the other bella once night falls," he told her before she could even protest. Annalise remained speechless as Ezio took one of her hands into his and placed a kiss on her knuckles. She stared after him in bewilderment as he turned another corner and headed off to find Altair.

"Do you know what you're doing, Ezio?" Annalise asked, more to herself than anyone else. The skin where he had placed his lips on still burned. Fighting with herself, she clenched her hand and tried to remain in control.

"Do I know what I'm doing?" she asked once more in a low whisper. She shouldn't have agreed to meet him later on with Monica and Altair. Something was bound to go wrong; they no longer belonged to one another. They had no right to slip away from their creeds to enjoy themselves even if it was for one night.

'_It's just one night,' _her mind repeated trying to justify her actions as she headed towards her room to get dressed.

'_What could possibly go wrong?'_

* * *

"This was a bad idea, what if we blow her cover?" Annalise whispered watching her partner from the shadows. Much to her predicament she was currently in a narrow alley with Ezio and Altair standing behind her. The trio remained silent and still as statues as they watched the assassination play out.

Monica crouched from her position on one of the many rooftops that surrounded her. She checked to make sure that he mask was in place and that her knives were within her reach. Nothing had been going right lately for her. She had gotten nicked with a knife during her last contract, something that both disappointed and angered her at the same time.

Her musings were cut short when she noticed a lone figure making its way down the street where she had been waiting for over an hour. A coy smile stretched across her lips as she allowed her body to drop down noisily in the alley where her target had just walked by.

The man stopped and turned towards the source of the noise in apparent panic. Monica crouched and remained low to the ground knowing full well that the man was horrified by now. He wouldn't go into the alley to see what the disturbance was, he wasn't that stupid.

"What is she doing?" Altair whispered as Annalise turned to glare at him. He had obviously never seeing Monica tracking down and killing a target before.

"She likes to play with her prey before she kills them," Annalise explained turning her attention back to her partner.

Monica whistled mockingly from her shadows lowering the pitch before changing the tone and whistling again. The man by this time kept looking around for the source; it seemed to change spots whenever he thought he was close to pinning it. The fact was, Monica hadn't moved an inch, she remained in the same spot.

"Ah, I see," Annalise laughed as she continued to watch with amusement. Ezio and Altair on the other hand remained confused but soon started to catch on. Monica wanted the man to lose his hold on reality before she killed him; she wanted to drive him insane.

"W-where are you, what do you want?" the man demanded, trying to sound strong despite the fear that was rising within him.

"I'm here," Monica whispered causing the man to turn his back on her. Her eyes gleamed in anticipation; she had to stop herself from lunging at him then and there. Just a little more and she would be rid of him for good.

"No, here," she laughed causing him to turn to the side to face another alley.

Annalise froze once she realized that the man was staring straight at her and the other two assassins behind her. They had been caught by Monica's target and in the process ruined her contract.

The man turned away from them with a choked yelp and started to run before he ran into a solid surface. Monica glared at him from his position on the ground as he tried to get up. She placed her boot on his chest and held him down with a sneer on her face.

"Who do you work for?" she asked, annoyed that her fun had been cut short. She threw a glare over at Ezio and Altair knowing that directing one at Annalise was meaningless by now. All she asked for was silence and discretion when she went after a target, clearly she couldn't even get that.

"No one," the man replied through clenched teeth once he saw that it was a woman holding him down. Monica tsked at him before applying pressure onto his chest. The man squirmed beneath her but refused to answer her.

"Tell me and I'll let you go," Monica offered, her hand twitching with the blade that she hid behind her back. She waited patiently as the man pondered his options.

"The Spaniard," he replied hesitantly as Monica nodded in understanding. She had caught several of his men as of late. There had to be something that tied them all together, there had to be a reason.

"What does he want?" she asked once more increasing the pressure that she was applying. Altair and Ezio by this time were paying close attention as they stepped out of the alley after Annalise. The man glanced at them and then at Monica with a smile on his face.

"He wants to take both of your creeds out of the picture," he replied as Monica growled upon seeing him talk so confidently.

"Wipe that damn smile off of your face," she snarled at him crouching with the blade in her hand. His eyes widened considerably and the grin that he had on his lips disappeared instantly.

"Wait! You said you'd let me live!" the man pleaded raising his hands at Monica with a look of horror on his face. Altair stared at her as well waiting to see what she would do. Annalise merely shook her head at the man, of course he wasn't going to be set free.

"I wouldn't want you to run back crying to Daddy and tell him that you ran into us," Monica replied running the blade over his neck in one swift move. The man choked on his own blood for a couple of seconds before his body finally gave in.

"What the hell do you think you were doing?" Monica asked clearly outraged as she turned her attention onto the trio who stared back with different expressions on their faces. Ezio looked horrified as he used Annalise for cover while Altair stared back at her calmly.

"We were just waiting for you to kill him, I never understood your concept of breaking a target before killing them," Annalise replied with a look of indifference on her face. Monica sighed in irritation while she tried to calm her nerves. The blade in her hand was returned to it sheath while she ignored the dead body next to her.

"Well your little interruption is going to cost me a trip to the damn doctor," Monica mumbled walking away from them with a scowl on her face. Annalise merely sighed after her suspicions were confirmed. The man had managed to but her partner's shoulder in a desperate attempt to get away.

Altair followed after her with a disapproving sigh while Ezio and Annalise trailed at the back. The trip to the small store was rather long due to them pausing periodically to make sure no guards were patrolling around them.

"Ah, I see you are back, what is it this time, _niña mia_?" the doctor asked as Monica shuffled over to him. Altair stepped in after her while Ezio and Annalise kept watch just outside of the door. The doctor shook his head in dismay the moment Monica undid her robes and allowed them to fall off of her shoulder. A large bloody gash stared back at him.

"I forgot to dodge," Monica mumbled, clearly annoyed with the fact that she had to go back to the doctor so soon.

"It has not even been a week since your last visit, you'll end up dead if you keep this up," the man commented catching Altair's attention. The moment the doctor left to get some more supplies he turned his piercing gaze onto Monica.

"What do you think you are doing?" he snapped dangerously while she merely avoided his gaze. This seemed uncharacteristic of her; the Arab's interest peaked by then.

"Why should it matter to you?" Monica snapped turning her stubborn gaze to him. For a brief moment his expression softened, he realized he was being too harsh on her.

"You should know why," he replied quietly. Monica blinked several times wondering if she had heard correctly. She had tried everything to keep him away; she had even gone out of her way to avoid looking at him whenever they crossed paths. Why was it so difficult for her to just forget him and put him out of her mind?

'_You love him,' _her mind pointed out as a red tint settled on her cheeks much to her predicament. Altair turned his attention back to her upon seeing this. Despite the chill of the wind hitting her exposed skin Monica felt like her cheeks were on fire.

Much to her relief the doctor walked in with the rest of his supplies and ushered Altair aside after several minutes of arguing between the two men. The doctor finally gave in and allowed the assassin to remain in the room as he treated the cut on Monica's shoulder. Her hands gripped the sheets of the bed underneath her in pain as the man poured the disinfectant on the gash.

Altair moved to her side when he saw this, he had never been there when she was being tortured or beaten. He had never been there when she was left to tend to her own wounds after a session of being lashed to the brink of death. The least he could do was be there for her now.

Surprise filled him the moment he felt her hand grip his arm for support. The grip she had lessened over time to the point of her letting go after realizing that she had drawn closer to him for support. She couldn't keep doing that, he wasn't hers anymore. What would Maria say if she found him with her in the middle of the night at the doctor?

"This will never work," Monica commented rising from the table after the man had bandaged her up. She dropped a small leather pouch filled with coins near the entrance before exiting quickly. Annalise stared at her in confusion before following after her in concern.

"You still love her, don't you?" Ezio asked the moment Altair stepped out of the shop with a grim expression on his face. The grandmaster turned away from him without answering and headed in the opposite direction with the Italian behind him. They all needed time to themselves, to get their thoughts straight before they acted without thinking.

* * *

"They haven't changed, brother," a woman commented as she watched the whole scene play out from the top of the rooftops. The clown next to her tilted his head in the direction where the assassins had gone off to while the woman kept her gaze fixed on the Diamond Dogs.

"The master wants us to bring them in for questioning," he commented as he ignored the assassins noticing that they were too far away to do or hear anything. The Spaniard had sent them to retrieve the two Diamond Dogs that were walking further and further away from the only people who could help them. It had been five years since they had left the circus, how hard could it be to capture them?

"Do I hear doubt, Cahin?" the woman asked turning to look at her brother as the other laughed and checked the knives near his waist. They made their way over the streets jumping through balconies and railings with light steps while following their targets.

"Of course not, Caha."

**Remember those two? Of course you do! Anyway, review! :D**


	16. Turn the Tables

**Turn the Tables **

**A/N: So sorry for the long wait my dears. I havent been as inspired as of late and Im sure it will show in this chapter, I'll regain my inspiration soon though so dont fret :D Enjoy my dears! I promise to write back next time! **

"Do you hear that?" Annalise asked, pausing while holding Monica back. The brunette paused and cracked her neck before loosening her muscles. She had heard the noise a while back. Now she was sure that someone was following them.

"This is bad," Monica whispered, catching a glimpse of a mask out of the corner of her eye. How could she forget her mentor and the infamous mask that she wore whenever she tracked down her targets?

"What do you-" Annalise started before a small smoke bomb rolled out of a nearby alley and exploded in front of them. Monica coughed and threw her sleeve up to cover her mouth as the air around her became thick with smoke.

Annalise immediately backed away, Cahin had taught her better. She knew the first thing she had to do was get out of the area in order to get a better view of everything. Before the blond could do anything she heard the trademark crack of his whip amongst the dense smoke.

Monica stumbled out of it while holding her side. Despite the darkness of the street in which they were in, Annalise could still see her partner's red fingers as she pulled her hand back from her chest.

"What the hell…is going on?" Monica gasped, clawing at the dirt floor in order to get away. Annalise's panicked eyes scanned the smoke as it started to clear. Two figures stood beside each other. One of them twirled a flag rum whip in his wrist while the woman beside him played with her two daggers.

"Cahin?" Annalise asked, recognizing her mentor. The harlequin tilted his head at her but didn't respond.

"You have forgotten how to address your superiors, child," his chilling voice whispered, the tone hard as steel. Annalise's frown grew even more when she heard this; he had changed over the years.

Monica stared at the pair in shock from her position on the floor. Her horrified eyes stared at Caha's figure as she tilted her head at the Diamond Dog and faked a lunge at her.

Annalise was surprised when Monica flinched back despite her injuries.

"You have grown weaker over the years, I would have thought that all those session with the whip would have taught you how to dodge one properly," Caha hissed, her knuckles cracking as she gripped her daggers with a firm hold.

Monica was still refusing to respond, seeing the harlequin that had trained her for over two years brought back unpleasant memories. She hadn't forgotten the cuts and lashes that she had gotten whenever she forgot to dodge or block. The broken bones and fractured ribs hadn't slipped form her mind either. Caha had scarred her just like Cahin had scarred Annalise.

The two harlequins had trained them, molded them into the Diamond Dogs that they had become.

"Where is the Italian that trails after you like a lost _cucciolo?" _Cahin asked, walking around the two women who remained frozen in their spots. Annalise locked eyes with him and trailed her hand up to her throwing knives when he drew closer.

Cahin saw this and stopped dead in his tracks.

"How dare you pull a knife on the man who made you into what you are today," he growled, cracking his whip inches away from her face. Annalise stepped back and stumbled when he did this. He had always managed to make her lose her concentration whenever she was trying to remain calm.

"_Cara, _you have not moved from that spot since we revealed ourselves," Caha whispered, crouching in front of Monica, "I taught you better!"

Annalise winced when she saw the harlequin backhand her partner. Monica's face snapped to the side monstrously as a whimper left her lips.

"Why are you voicing your pain…I taught you better than that as well!" Caha shouted, standing and pulling her leg back before she landed a blow to Monica's side. Annalise moved forward when she saw this but stopped when the familiar crack of Cahin's whip reached her ears.

She closed her eyes, knowing what was coming; moments before she felt the metal pieces at the end of the whip wrap around her ankle and dig into her skin. A scream parted her lips and left her mouth as he tugged on it animalistically and sent her crashing down onto the ground. He began to drag her towards him as she dug her nails into the dirt ground in an attempt to prevent herself from drawing closer to him.

"What you did to me was monstrous," Monica choked, holding her side as Caha pulled back and cracked her neck. The harlequin gripped her daggers tightly and imbedded them into the ground before she reached down and heaved Monica up towards her.

"And I created a monster," Caha replied, looking into the brunette's eyes. She had seen how she stalked and killed her targets. The two years that she had had her and put her though hell had paid off. Her technique made the sadist within the harlequin proud.

"Yes, you did!" Monica barked, spitting blood onto Caha's mask. The claw gauntlet over her hand flew up as she swiped at the harlequins face. A blood curdling scream echoed off of the walls around them as Caha's hand flew up to cover her face.

Her mask had shattered and four gashes lay across one of her cheeks and the bridge of her nose. Cahin turned when he heard his sister scream, allowing Annalise to get up and land a blow across his face.

He stumbled back when his mask cracked and split his lip.

"Imbecile!" Caha shrieked, rolling her arm as she advanced towards Monica. The brunette panicked, she knew that once the harlequin lost control of herself there was no going back. Monica had seen her kill several horse trainers when they had failed to brush her white stallion and take it out for a walk. She had taken a human life because of a horse; there was no telling what she would do to Monica for scratching her face.

Annalise followed Caha with her eyes moments before Cahin crouched and swept her feet from under her. The blond fell back in shock and managed to roll over moments before several blades dug themselves into the dirt where her body had been moments before.

Caha on the other hand threw a blade at Monica and smirked when it imbedded itself into the brunette's leg. Monica hissed when she felt the knife pierce her skin. She registered Caha straddling her moments before she started to land blow after blow to her face. She could feel her nose crack and ooze out blood while her lips split and stained her teeth with blood.

Her body convulsed after each blow in an attempt to shake the harlequin off of her. Caha was blind with rage as she continued to hit the woman beneath her despite the protest that came from her aching knuckles.

"Caha, we were ordered to bring them back alive!" Cahin shouted, panic apparent in his voice when he saw the amount of blood pooled around the Diamond Dog. His sister plunged her blade into the brunette's chest before she registered the words that her brother had just spoken.

Caha glanced up and paused when she realized that she had nearly beaten the other woman to death. Blood covered most of her face and hands.

"You're dead!" Annalise growled when she saw the state that her partner had been left in. She picked herself off of the ground and managed to slice through Cahin's robes with a calculated swipe of her hidden blade.

She then turned her attention onto Caha and sent a throwing knife towards her with all of the strength that she could muster. The blond smirked when she saw it hit the harlequin just above her collar bone.

Rage flashed across the siblings faces as they turned their attention onto Annalise.

Good.

She had them exactly where she wanted them, with any luck she would be able to drive them away and give Monica a chance to live.

"That's all you got? You've lost your touch over the years," Annalise teased, backing away slowly while she reached behind her back to grab a smoke bomb of her own. She could see how Caha's chest heaved in rage while Cahin's eyes stayed on her the entire time. Hate and fury were clouding her thoughts, they weren't thinking straight and the odds were in her favor.

She dropped the bomb in front of her and darted in the opposite direction. Cahin sprinted after her, throwing blade out and ready while Caha paused and turned to look at Monica's unmoving body.

"Stay here, if you move I will make you wish for death before I am through with you," she whispered into the other woman's ear. She straightened herself up and took off after her brother. Monica wouldn't be moving any time soon, that was the only reason she was leaving the brunette alone.

The two raced after the remaining Diamond Dog through the narrow streets and alleys of Spain in a mad chase. Every time that they thought they would catch up to her she would turn another corner and they would lose her for a couple of seconds.

"I grow tired of this," Cahin snarled, pulling out two blades and picking up speed. Caha watched as her brother turned a corner sharply and disappeared out of sight while she continued to follow Annalise.

The blond noticed the absence of one of the harlequins and began to actually prey. She knew that her luck and time had run out, her only hope was that Monica had managed to get up and make it back to the creed where she would be safe.

"Enough!" Cahin shouted at her as she turned another corner and ran straight into is two blades. A brief moment passed, everything around her suddenly slowed down and she couldn't register any sound. The only thing she could feel were the two blades piercing her lower stomach and the blood that filled her mouth. He had pierced something vital.

"Go and get the other one, I have to take her back to the boss," Cahin ordered, pulling out the blades in one swift move. Annalise choked and grasped at his robes as her knees gave out and she knelt before him. Her arms wrapped around one of his legs as she tried to keep herself awake.

Her vision started to cloud as she stared at the small puddle that was starting to form in front of her. She coughed out more blood and stained his robes as he crouched down in front of her and smiled at her.

"You cannot run any more, child," his voice cooed as she closed her eyes and fell forward. That was all she registered before everything went black and the world around her fell into darkness.

OoOoOoOoOoOoO

"_Puta madre," _Monica groaned, flipping her body so that she was lying face down. She could taste her own blood as she tried to get up but failed time and time again. Her nose felt like it had been assaulted over and over again by a hammer and her leg and chest still had Caha's knives in them.

After several tries she managed to sit up and crawl over to a nearby wall. She pushed her body and stood while leaning against the building with difficulty. If she was going to live through her ordeal she needed to move fast. The knives in her body didn't receive a second glance from her. Pulling them out now would probably cause her to bleed out before she reached the creed.

She pushed herself off of the wall and stumbled through the shadows, praying that Annalise had somehow made it back and that she didn't run into Caha on her way to the brotherhood. Her ragged breathing and groans would give her away in an instant if she didn't reach her haven soon.

As every second passed by her body grew weaker. It began to shut down on her; she found it harder and harder to take another step. She was close to the creed…so close. The building was only a few feet away, all she had to do was cross the brightly lit street in front of it. Just a few more steps and she would have a chance to live.

She took another step forward and collapsed just outside of the alley, her body wasn't going to walk another inch. Desperation filled her as she cried out silently and tried to go through her options.

Shuffling from behind her reached her ears, she turned and saw Caha's familiar figure stalking over to her from across an alley. Horror filled her within seconds, she had gotten so far and now Annalise's sacrifice would be in vein.

In one last attempt to keep the harlequin away, Monica reached up and pulled the dagger out of her chest. Caha paused, knowing that the brunette would probably use it to defend herself. Instead, she hurled it over to the large double doors of the creed and crawled out into the light of the street.

The harlequin lunged towards her when she saw the doors being opened from within.

"No!" Monica screamed in horror, feeling Caha's cold gauntlet wrap around her ankle in an attempt to pull her back into the shadows and out of view.

Much to her relief she saw Altair's familiar figure step out of the doors with a look of annoyance on his face as he glanced around for the source of the disruption. Ezio stepped out after him followed by Karim and Hadar.

With the last ounce of strength that she had she managed to kick Caha's hand off of her ankle and stumble towards the light once more. Altair's head whipped over to her when he saw movement out of the corner of his eye.

"You will pay dearly for this, child," Caha whispered to her, stepping further back into the shadows as Monica collapsed once more and the assassins rushed over to her. The harlequin had no choice but to leave the brunette, she couldn't afford to face off against the Italian much less the Grandmaster of the Creed.

"Bella!" Ezio shouted, waving his arms above his head dramatically as he called over more guards for reinforcement. He wasn't taking any chances, for all he knew she could have been followed. Monica couldn't have been more grateful for his dramatic approach at everything it never failed to amuse her, she was even glad to hear his loud voice shouting orders at everyone.

Altair was by her side in mere seconds, already picking her up and examining her wounds. He frowned slightly when he saw blood oozing out of her chest and leg. Her broken nose was the least of his problems; in fact it dimmed when he looked at her further. Whomever she had run into had certainly known where and how stab someone in order to inflict pain.

"I'm sorry, _habibi," _Monica choked, her body feeling heavy as she turned her head and buried it into the crook of Altair's arm. He froze when he heard what she had just said. She was probably unaware of what she was saying, had she been in her right mind she would have never said anything like that to him and she would have denied his help

. He looked down at her once more when he felt her body go limp in his arms. Panic flashed through his eyes for a few moments before he calmed himself down.

Ezio saw this and sent word for Malik, there was no way that the Arabian would think straight with Monica in that state. He wondered where Annalise was, until Monica awoke, however, he wouldn't know for sure if the blond had been with her or if she was safe in one of the other bureaus.

Nevertheless, once they took care of Monica he would lead a group of assassins himself to look for her. He wasn't taking any chances. Not after what had happened last time.

"I swear to you, I will kill them all, I will make them suffer for what they have done," Altair whispered to the brunette in his arms, holding her close as he picked her up with care and headed inside. He was seething for what they had done to her but he would have to wait to see what had happened. He needed her awake in order for him to go after the right people, he needed her by his side once more for everything to be alright.

Maria merely watched as Altair completely disregarded her and Anna who had been present as well. The pair stared at each other in disbelief as their respective assassins completely forgot about them.

"_Habibi_, she called him _habibi_…" Maria whispered, suspicion and rage creeping into her once more moments before she started to head back into the creed. She looked back just once and saw a harlequin staring back at her from the shadows. Maria shook the image out of her mind and made her way inside of the creed with envy coursing through her veins.

Who was she to take away all of Altair's attention from her? She had been his only concern until the brunette had shown up. As soon as she had stepped into the picture she had gotten brushed aside time and time again. It was as if she wasn't even there half of the time.

He didn't even look at her anymore, much less talk to her. She felt like he was purposefully pushing her away. The incident with the cat was proof enough, he had been about to hit her over an animal.

She made her way into the creed and followed the panicked assassins until she reached Altair's room. A cold laugh left her lips; of course he had taken her to his room. She watched as the Arab refused to leave her side even as Malik rushed around gathering supplies.

So much attention was being given to someone they had supposedly been enemies with over "two weeks" ago. She had a feeling that they had known each other for longer than that.

She turned away from the scene, aware that Altair hadn't even noticed that she had been standing in the doorway the whole time. Her mind was already racing with ideas.

She would find out who that woman was to Altair.

One way or another.

**Review!**


	17. Mine

**Mine**

**A/N: Well, I've been uninspired as of late but the last reviewer sort of knocked some sense into me and reminded me that I hadn't updated this story in a while so here it is! The next one will be with Annalise so dont fret my dears, try to bare with me until my muse returns and I write better chapters! :D **

"_Come now, cara, I taught you better than that," Caha's chilling voice cackled as she cracked the whip over Monica's exposed back. She winced and grit her teeth; she wouldn't give the harlequin the pleasure of hearing her scream. That would only result in getting more lashes. _

_Monica paused and picked herself off of the muddied ground before looking at the circle or galloping horses around her. _

"_Try again!" Caha barked at her, twirling the whip in her hand ready to snap it over Monica's back again. _

_The brunette looked at the horses around her and managed to find the slower one. She ran to it and jumped on using its mane as support before standing on its back. She lasted for a few seconds but lost her footing and crashed down onto the ground once more. _

"_Pathetic, you will never last in a circus!" Caha screeched, swinging the whip and cracking it repeatedly over her back. Monica could only close her eyes and pray for the ordeal to be over. _

"_Look at me when I am talking to you!" Caha snarled, turning her over with the pair or daggers in her hands. Monica's eyes widened and stayed glued on the silver daggers. She knew what was coming. _

_Before she could even blink, Caha brought the pair of daggers down and impaled her chest again and again. Monica choked on her own blood as the harlequin stabbed her repeatedly. She clawed at the mud around her in an attempt to get away and stop the pain. This was all al nightmare, she needed to wake up. _

_She needed to wake up…_

* * *

Monica shot up on from the bed where she had been placed, screaming and ready to bolt towards the door. Her body lunged forward failing to recognize the large decorative room that she was in only to be stopped by a pair of strong arms.

"No!" she screamed in horror, feeling her panic rise by the second. Her chest heaved up and down at a quick pace in an attempt to get more air into her lungs and calm her down.

"It is just me, calm down, _hayati," _Altair's voice whispered, his grip firm as she struggled against him. It took her a few moments to process his voice and what he had just said. After realizing where she was and who was holding her, her body went completely limp. She was safe for now, she knew that much. Caha was nowhere near her, or so she liked to think.

She dropped her head back against his chest and sighed deeply before a hiss escaped through her lips. A searing pain shot up her spine whenever she moved her leg or twisted her body too much. She realized that Caha had done more damage than she had originally given her credit for.

"Annalise?" Monica asked, looking back at Altair's stressed expression. He shook his head and sat back against the headboard of the bed.

"We are aware of who you ran into, Ezio is out looking for her," he replied, trying to make her feel better. Monica could feel her heart sink when she saw him shake his head. Her partner wasn't back yet, that was never a good thing.

"How did you find out?" Monica asked, as far as she knew they had been the only ones out at that hour and any locals would have been horrified of crossing the Archaos Circus, they knew who ran it.

"You tossed and turned for three days straight screaming something about a pair or harlequins from a Spanish circus," Altair replied, pinching the bridge of his nose with one hand. The endless nights of being by her side without rest were starting to catch up to him. Now that she was up and moving he was sure that she would pull through.

"I'm sorry for being such a burden," she whispered, noticing the way that his shoulders were slumped, he only let his posture slip whenever he went days without sleeping. She was willing to bet her life on the fact that he hadn't left her side since she had made it back to the creed.

"Nonsense," he replied, picking himself up and moving towards the nightstand on the opposite side of the bed. Monica watched him with weary eyes, she couldn't believe the fact that she had been out for three days.

"What are you doing?" she asked, seeing him gather some bandages and other supplies. He sat behind her and scoffed at her question. A small smile tugged at the edge of her lips, she was glad that he hadn't lost his charming personality.

"Sit up straight, I need to change your bandages," he snapped. Monica resisted the urge to shake her head, there was the assassin that she knew, he was back to being cold and indifferent towards her.

She shivered when she felt him used his hidden blade to cut off the bandages around her chest. Her arm instantly flew up to cover herself and save whatever honor she had left. She heard him snort in annoyance before she felt him start to wrap around the bandages and smack her arm down.

"I am sitting behind you woman, I cannot see anything," he sneered, amazed at her level of stupidity. Then again she had just woken up from a three day comma, what else could he expect out of her. He tightened the bandages more than what was probably necessary and moved to sit in front of her to change the one on her right thigh.

Monica shivered noticing that the only thing covering her upper half were the bandages. She looked around and covered herself with one of his sheets in order to keep herself somewhat warm.

"Sit still already," he snapped, holding her leg in place as he slid his hand up her thigh and slid the hidden blade underneath the bandages. Monica's face flushed moments before he tugged upwards and slit off the bandages. She kept her gaze down, unable to stare at him for long and prevent a blush from coming to her cheeks. She had just come to the conclusion that he had been the one changing her bandages, what use was hiding when he had probably already seen everything?

"Thank you," she managed to murmur after he was done and disposed of the bloodied bandages that he had just taken off of her. She rested back on the bed and watched as he paused near the window to look out into the city. No words could describe how much she hated him whenever he refused to rest, to simply lie down and forget all about the world for an hour or two.

"Altair, get some rest," she pleaded, patting the empty space beside her. She even moved away to give him more space and to distance herself from him.

"I do not need rest," he growled back, refusing to listen, right now what he needed to do was to take out a patrol of his own to look for Annalise, every second that he wasted sleeping could be used in finding her.

"Altair, please," she begged, refusing to let him go out without at least an hour of sleep. She didn't want him getting maimed because of his stubbornness. He needed rest before he got himself killed.

The Grandmaster turned to look at her and noticed the way she was practically hanging off the edge of the bed in an attempt to free up a larger area for him. He shook his head and sighed while walking over to her, she was right; he couldn't go out without resting first.

He didn't even know why he was listening to her as he sat down on the edge of the bed and fell back on it. The moment his head connected with the pillow the weight of going without sleep for several days caught up with him. His eyelids grew heavy and made it harder to stay awake. Something was missing; however, he couldn't fathom what though.

It wasn't until he turned his head to look at the woman sitting next to him that he realized what it was. With a small motion of his hand he called her to him. Monica hesitated, unsure of nearing him. Her body scooted closer to the assassin next to him moments before she laid down away from him. She made sure that there was distance between the two of them before she allowed herself to drift off once more.

Altair's weary eyes never left her sleeping form. He found it unearthly that she was lying beside him after five years of her absence. It was just like the first time she had crossed paths with him and they had arrived at the creed. She had been the only one to convince him to sleep whenever something needed to be done.

He brought up his hand to gently caress her cheek, to make sure that she was real and not just a figment of his imagination like the countless times before. The moment she sighed and leaned into his touch, however, his breath halted for a fraction of a second. She was there, she was real.

"Get some rest, Altair," she mumbled, half asleep. The Grandmaster pulled back his hand unaware that she had been awake the whole time. What she did next only made him want to stay there with her forever.

She curled up next to him, breaking the distance that she had put between them minutes ago and rested her head on his chest. One of her arms rested over his abdomen and her legs wrapped around one of his.

The Arab could immediately feel the warmth that she brought with her and instead of pushing her away like he should have he draped an arm around her protectively and pulled her closer. A contented sight left Monica's lips as he stroked her hair softly and looked out of the window. He couldn't help but think that this is how it should have been since the beginning. If he hadn't lost her back then she would have remained at the creed and he would have claimed her as his. But now he was stuck between her and Maria, he couldn't have picked more opposite women even if he tried.

He knew who he would pick, however, if and when the time came.

He had always known.

A sigh left his exhausted body before he rested his head over Monica's and finally closed his eyes. He was sleeping within seconds, unaware of the figure that had been eavesdropping outside of the door the whole time.

Maria's teeth grit as she pushed herself off of the door and stormed down the stairs. How could a whore like that make her way into Altair's life that easily? It had taken her years to get him to let her through his barriers.

The way he talked with her made Maria want to take a dagger and plunge it into the woman's heart repeatedly until she was no longer breathing. He never took that tone with her, never. Had she ordered him to get some rest he would have probably had her killed.

But that wasn't the case.

Oh, no.

He listened to _her. _

Respected _her._

Guarded _her. _

Risked his life and went nights without sleeping just for _her. _

Maria felt her blood seethe as she made her way down to her room. He even shared his room with her! That should have been her all along not the Diamond Dog that they had supposedly known for only two weeks!

That should have been her!

Why wasn't it her?

Why wasn't it _ever _her?

Did she always have to come in second?

Hot tears streamed down her face as she entered her room and collapsed on the bed. She prayed that the woman's wounds wouldn't get better, that her broken nose wouldn't heal.

She wanted her dead.

A glimmering blade on her nightstand caught her attention. Reaching for it, she turned over on the bed and ran her finger down the edge of the blade, hissing when it cut her finger. Good, it was still sharp.

If she was going to do something she would need to do it soon before the brunette recovered completely. She just had to wait for the right time.

She just had to wait for Altair to drop his guard.

She would kill the Diamond Dog in her sleep and Altair would be hers again.

All she had to do was wait.

**Review!**


	18. Sorry

Author's Note:

Hey, guys. I know Im not supposed to make any chapters author's notes but I felt like it was important to let you all know that I will not be updating this story for quite some time. I have finally gotten around to rewriting the first story, Wingless Hawks and the first chaptere is already up. I feel like it is my priority to revise this rather than continue the sequel since the first story looks pretty bad compared to this one. I hope you will forgive me and check out the new and revised version. I will finish this story, just not in the near future.

Thank you all,

Fenix.


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